Lady Phantomhive
by Teagarden
Summary: Ciel had a sister also sold into slavery to an occult, but when she escaped she ended up allied with the reapers. Three years later, the siblings joyfully meet up again. Unfortunately, William decides they can reign in Sebastian if they perform a spell on him to make him fall in love with Ciel's sister. Now they all have to live with Sebastian's new found obsession.
1. Prologue

A/N: This chapter is written in a bit of a different style than the rest will be since it's to set-up the story. It's also a bit darker than the others will be.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye

_Prologue _

_3 Years Ago _

Faye sat in a huddled pile with the rest of the girls, fearful of who would be chosen today. Many of the girls had lost all hope. They sat there with dead looks in their eyes, oblivious to everything around them. It was the only way they could cope. Faye couldn't blame them. The temptation to follow their lead was strong. To let go of all her feelings, to be numb and let the pain and humiliation just wash over her…but she didn't want to lose hope. She didn't want to lose _her. _She didn't know why. It wasn't as though she had anything waiting for her if she made it out of here. Her parents were dead. Her mansion burned to the ground. Her last sight of her younger brother Ciel was of him being dragged away after their butler, Tanaka, was stabbed trying to protect him. He was most likely dead as well. It must be the Phantomhive blood that wouldn't let Faye quite.

The door opened and two men came in, grabbed a girl each, and left. The girls not chosen let out a quiet breath of relief. Another moment of not being taken. Another moment of relative safety. Over five months ago the Phantomhives had been attacked. Faye was kidnapped and sold as a slave to a psychotic occult. The men of the occult believed that raping beautiful young woman while performing bizarre rituals gave them power. Woman being a relative term since none of them were even really adults yet. The youngest were thirteen, the oldest eighteen. Faye fell somewhere in the middle of that range being fifteen years old.

Faye was sure the occultists must be insane to believe their macabre rituals would give them power. Or maybe they were just using it as an excuse to act out their depraved desires. Still, as time had gone by after the rituals Faye felt odd. As though she some strange part of her was open and could act as a conduit for something, or as though she could summon energy. Which was ridiculous, of course. Magic wasn't real. Maybe after going through so many tortuous ceremonies and hearing the degenerate occultists talk so much about power and the effects of the ritual she was beginning to believe that they did do something.

The door opened again. The girls all tensed and stopped breathing. Faye's hands curled into fists as the man slowly walked in and perused all the women. Was it really necessary for him to drag this out? He stopped next to Faye, reached down to grab her arm, and jerked her up. Faye grit her teeth, her stomach churning. She gave only a token resistance, knowing that it would be far worse if she did fight. She struggled to prevent herself from hyperventilating, the only thought running through her head was, 'No more, no more, no more.' How long was she supposed to suffer this?! Death would be better than this existence.

He threw her into a room and locked the door. There was a pentagram as well as other designs drawn on the floor. Torches around the room let in meager light. The window had bars over it. The curtains let in no light from the dark night outside. It had been so long since Faye had seen the sun…The tormentors only came at night. The rest of the time the woman were locked in a windowless, stifling room.

The man removed his coat and hat and looked at Faye intently. "Remove your dress," he ordered. Faye clenched her fists and slowly walked backwards towards the window. An irritated look flashed across his face and as he walked towards her she noticed the flash of a gun in his pocket. Faye hardly knew what she was doing, but so help her she could suffer this no longer. She would rather die than go on living like this.

Faye grabbed the curtain behind her and whipped it around the man's neck. His eyes widened in surprise, but before he could move she jumped on his back, driving him to his knees and pulling the curtain tight. She grabbed the end still attached to the curtain rod and the loose end looped around his neck and pulled. She didn't know if she could actually manage to strangle him. Faye had no idea how hard it was to strangle a man, and she was weak since the hostage women were only fed once a day.

The man gasped, grasping at the curtain, Faye pulled harder, digging her knee into his back to give herself leverage. She was terrified what would happen if he got free. Slowly, so slowly, his attempts to get free stopped and his hands dropped to his sides before he fell on his face. Faye kept pulling the curtain, not trusting that he was out yet. She didn't want to kill anyone. Even after all that had been done to her, she didn't want this man's death on her conscience. She'd love to see all the occultists hanged by the law, but not by her. However, if it took this man's death to gain her freedom, then so be it.

After a few more minutes Faye loosened her grip before dropping the curtain and standing up. She looked at the man dispassionately, wondering if he were dead or just passed out. If only her old life could see her now. Who could have possibly imagined the eldest child of the noble Phantomhive family in this situation?

Rousing herself out of her stupor, Faye reached down to grab the man's gun out of his pocket. She pulled the curtains to the sides of the window and studied the bars. They were bolted into the wall. If she shot the wall next to the bolts, maybe she could pull them away…which only left the problem that they were on the second floor. Faye hooked the fingers of one hand around the bars as she peered out the window. There was another building only a few feet away, meaning that directly outside the window would be an alleyway. Good. Faye had been afraid she was locked up on an isolated estate. That there was a building so close by was a good sign. It likely meant they were in a city.

Faye looked nervously over her shoulder at the locked door. Once she started firing the gun, it probably wouldn't be long before others came running. It would take them a while to get the door open, but she wanted to be long gone before that happened.

Turning resolutely back to the window, Faye steadied the gun in both hands and took aim. The bars were bolted at the top and bottom of the window. Getting just two off should be enough for her to squeeze through. She shot near the bottom bars then the top, leaping forward right afterwards. She dropped the gun to grab the bars in both hands, and pulled with all her might. The bars came loose, the damaged wall crumbing around the bolts. Faye stumbled back, dropping the bars before scooping up the gun and running to the window. She pushed the window up and stared down at the ground apprehensively.

Hearing shouting outside the door gave her courage. Whatever damage this fall might do would be worth it if it got her away from here. She sat on the windowsill, singing her legs outside, then she lowered herself as far down as she could, her grip on the sill awkward due to the gun in her hand. Taking a deep breath she let go and plummeted to the ground. She landed on her feet before falling forward on her hands and knees. She gasped in pain and clutched her right ankle. She hadn't heard a crack. Hopefully, that meant it wasn't broken.

She stood up and shuffled along as fast as she could. Her guess that she was in a city was correct. Now if only she could figure out which city. She hurried through the street, not having any direction in mind other than _away _from that house. She had to find someplace to hide. Once they broke into that room and found her gone, they'd come looking for her.

As she turned a corner, she stopped dead in shock. There was a dapper looking man holding a pruner and a dead man on the ground in front of him, but out of the dead man was flowing multiple…strips? Each of the strips showed pictures of the dead man in various activities. After a moment, the strips seemed to collapse back into the man.

The man with the pruner looked up to see Faye and frowned. He adjusted his glasses before asking, "How did you sneak up on me?"

"W-what?" Faye asked in confusion, feeling frightened and completely bewildered.

"Humans aren't supposed to come upon a reaper when they are doing their job."

"They maybe you shouldn't do your job right in the open!" Faye burst out, surprising herself. For the past five months she had been docile, rarely ever speaking. Doing nothing but existing. She wasn't sure what came over her. Perhaps she was feeling heady from finally feeling fresh air on her skin again.

The man looked more closely at Faye, using his pruners to adjust his glasses this time. He studied her intently as he took a few steps closer.

"What do you want?" Faye demanded, taking a few steps back and tightening her hold on her gun. This was insane. What had this man done to make those strips with pictures appear than disappear? Had the world gone made while she was locked up? Or was she the one who had gone mad?

"Interesting," the man commented with his head titled to the side. "I've never seen a human with so much magical potential. I wonder where it comes from." He swiped his pruner towards Faye and she backed up more, half raising the gun. Could she shoot someone who hadn't actually caused her harm yet? Were there even any bullets left in the gun?

The man's eyes moved back and forth as though he were studying something. "What are you looking at?" Faye demanded, unnerved by his odd behavior.

Rather than answering her he replied, "I now see why you have such magical potential. It's a result of what's been done to you. And you're surprisingly virtuous given the ordeal you've gone through."

The two stood in silence for a minute. Faye still wondering if she should shoot the man, him staring at her intently. "This is a bit unconventional, but not unheard of. I'm going to offer you a job."

"You're what?" She asked, more confused than ever. Of all the possible outcomes of this scenario, this was certainly not one she could have predicted.

"Humans have at times worked for The Grim Reaper Dispatch Society. Particularly those with magical talents. You wouldn't do the job of a grim reaper, of course, but you can help out. There are some targets who can be particularly difficult to catch. Often criminals and evil men are the hard ones to get. I can train you to use your magic to help us. Are you interested?"

Faye was beyond overwhelmed and had no idea what was going on. What she did know was that she had just escaped a hell that was probably now searching to bring her back. Her family and home were both gone, and trying to reclaim her birthright as a Phantomhive would likely lead to more pain and danger since someone had obviously been targeting the Phantomhive family. She had no chances and no future prospects. Except maybe this.

"Could you do something to prove you mean what you say?" She asked. "To prove that you're a grim reaper, or that I can use magic? I won't simply just go with you." She had seen the thing with the strips, but it hadn't made any sense to her.

The man heaved a sigh. "This is tedious, but I suppose it would be reckless for you to run off with a man you've just met." Without further ado, he bent his legs and jumped. Except, he went up twenty feet in the air and landed on a nearby building.

Faye stared up at him in awe, the gun dropping from her limp hand. That was certainly proof that this man wasn't just human. "All right," she said, steeling her resolve. This would be her path in life. To learn magic and help grim reapers to end the lives of evil men who were meant to die. That idea had a ring of poetic justice to it.

"Very well," the man called down before jumping off the building. He landed softly next to her and said, "I'm afraid I've been remiss on introductions. My name is William T. Spears."

"I am Faye," she responded, leaving off her last name. Being Phantomhives was what led to the death of all her family. There was no need for her to lay claim to that name any longer.

**Meanwhile…**

Outside a two-story brick building stood a boy with an eye patch and next him was a tall butler. "This is the place," the boy ground out. "This is the cult that Faye was sold to. After four months of investigating we've tracked them down to here. Let's go."

The two entered the building just as three men were running down the stairs from the second floor. They stopped when they saw the two companions. "Oye! How'd you get in here?" One of them demanded.

The boy looked on disdainfully. "Where are you keeping the women?"

The three men looked at each other nervously. "I've no idea what you're talkin' bout," another said as he pulled a gun out of his pocket, "but you just walked into the wrong place."

He leveled the gun at the boy's head. The boy stared dispassionately at the gun before uttering one word. "Sebastian."

The butler bowed and said, "Yes, my Lord." Within seconds all three men were unarmed. Two were thrown over the banister where they lay unmoving. The third found his own gun pointed at his head. He fell backwards onto the stairs, shaking in fear.

"I will ask you one more time," the boy said coldly. "Where are you keeping the women?"

"I-in a room! There up the stairs and to the left. I-it's l-locked though."

"Not for long." The boy walked up the stairs, calling, "Come, Sebastian," once he reached the top. A shot rang out and a moment later the butler stood next to the boy. They reached the room and the butler effortlessly opened the door. A sharp crack was heard as the lock broke.

The boy peered into the dim room. There were several young women there, but none reacted to his presence other than shrinking back against the wall. He felt his heart rate speed up as he searched desperately. No. No. Nonononono! He abruptly turned his back on the women, bitterly disappointed. Faye wasn't there. They had already killed her. He took a slow breath to gain of himself control before saying, "Search out all the men in this building and kill them. Then hunt down all the members of the cult who aren't here, and burn their houses to the ground with them in it. They will all pay for defiling the Phantomhive name."

"Yes, my Lord," the butler replied as he bowed.


	2. First Encounter

A/N: If I'm going to complete a project I have to work on it consistently, so updates will probably be pretty frequent.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

"This one may be tricky," William said with a sigh, using his pruner to adjust his glasses. "Eric already attempted and failed to collect the soul of Claude Willamby."

"I don't think it will be so hard," Faye countered. "Eric is still new to the Reaper Society and Claude is a magician by trade. I think Claude merely used parlor tricks to escape and Eric panicked and decided that Claude's magic was real. Eric is too prideful to be able to admit he was outsmarted by a regular human."

"Excellent observations," William complemented with the barest hint of a smile. "Shall we proceed then?"

"Of course," Faye said, gesturing for William to lead the way. They were standing outside Claude Willamby's house. The man had been scheduled to die that morning, but due to Eric's mishap it would happen at night instead. That meant working overtime and William was not pleased in the least. The Grim Reaper Dispatch Society tried their best to send Faye in from the beginning on jobs they suspected would be tricky, but they only guessed correctly about two-thirds of the time. Sometimes Faye wasn't needed when she was sent, and sometimes she had to be sent in later.

William opened the door and Faye followed him close behind. She looked around the dim, lavishly decorated living room and wondered how a simple magician could afford all this. The only light to be seen was coming from down the hall and constant muttering could be heard from that direction.

Faye and William walked down the hall side by side until they entered a dining room. The light came from candelabras set up on either side of the table. The middle of the table was covered with bowls of dust and bottles with strangely colored liquid. Claude was standing on the other side of the table. He had dark, curly hair and wild eyes. He gave a wolfish grin when he saw the two.

"I knew you'd be back. I knew you'd come for me again, and this time I'll finish you off so you can't come looking for me again!" He grabbed a handful of dust from one of the bowls and threw it at the floor in front of William and Faye. Bright lights flashed before smoke exploded throughout the room.

Faye coughed and covered her mouth and nose with her hand to protect herself from the noxious gas. She ran around to the other side of the table, prepared to cast a spell…but Claude was gone before she got there. Knowing he couldn't have gotten past William to go back down the hall she scanned the room and found an open back door. Gathering her dress in one hand, she pursued.

She caught a flash of Claude's green coat as he made it around the neighboring house and she picked up her pace. As she rounded the side of the house she heard BANG and jerked back around, plastering herself against the wall. So Claude had a gun and thought he could stop the reapers with it. Foolish.

"I'll draw his fire," William said, appearing next to her. "You stop him from running."

Faye nodded and gathering her skirts again ran around the other side of the house to surprise Claude in the front. She heard another BANG and a triumphant yell. Then a fearful yell as Claude realized the bullet wouldn't stop William. He turned to run, but Faye was close enough now. She reached her right hand forward, fingers splayed and chanted, "It mye noc!" Her voice took on a resonant quality as it filled with power. Bright strings of light shot from her fingers to wrap around Claude before anchoring themselves in the ground. It was a spell to bind an evil soul. A lot of the magic she had been taught had to do with stopping evil souls. Of course, her own soul had to remain good for her to perform these spells or the purity of the magic would burn her up from the inside out.

Claude struggled, but was unable to escape the brightly colored strings lighting up the night. William walked up to him calmly, stopping when he was a few feet away. "Claude Willamby, it is your time to die." He lifted the pruner and stabbed it into Claude's heart. Claude's hands spasmed and his mouth opened in shock. Long lines of pictures showing Claude's life burst from his chest. They showed how he used his job as a magician to kidnap children. How he would experiment the effects of his powders and elixirs on them before killing them. At the end of the record he fell down dead, the bright strings holding him disappearing. With the evil soul gone, there was nothing more for Faye's spell to bind.

"A bit more trouble than we expected perhaps, but not too bad," William commented. "Let us return to-"

His statement was cut off by the plaintive cry of, "Wiiiilliiiiaaammm!"

Faye looked around in surprise before her eyes tightened in anger at the sight of the long-haired red head bounding toward them. Faye had never worked with Grell Sutcliff, but she knew he had recently been involved in an incidence where he killed people not on the reaper list. Faye was not pleased that Grell had merely been punished and demoted. Murderers should be either locked up or put down, whether they were human or reaper. Grell should at least have been banned from the Reaper Society after his actions.

Grell launched himself at William, wrapping his arms around him and burying his face in William's shoulder. "Save me!" He cried. William's normally stoic face took on a look of distaste as he tried to pry the distraught reaper off him.

Faye looked in the direction Grell had run from, wondering what could possibly scare a reaper. She frowned when she saw a handsome butler walking towards them. Why was Grell being pursued by a butler and why was he afraid of said butler?

William sighed, bringing Faye's attention back to him. His eyes turned cold as he stared at the butler. "I'm afraid I have a bit more work for you to accomplish tonight, Faye."

"What is it?" Faye asked curiously. Obviously, she was missing something about this situation, but she didn't know what.

"That man is a demon serving an English nobleman. Grell ran afoul of them a little while ago, and the demon now has orders to kill Grell. I don't expect you to be able to take on a demon, but would you detain him long enough for me to get Grell away from here?"

"All right," Faye agreed somewhat reluctantly. She didn't particularly see the harm in letting someone end Grell's life, but since the request had come from William she would comply.

Looking at the faux butler she felt uneasy. She wondered what could possibly compel a human to trade their soul for the service of such an unholy creature. Or why a creature so powerful would submit to being a butler. Were human souls really that valuable to a demon?

The demon smiled patronizingly at Faye. "You're not a reaper. Are you hoping to distract me with your looks?"

"Hardly. Hoctum irarae nym!" This spell was to bind demons. Having never had a chance to practice it before, Faye wasn't sure how well it would work. The bright strings shot from Faye's hands towards the demon and he jumped back with a snarl. He glared at the strings and Faye, enraged. William had explained to Faye when he was training her that this magic was too virtuous for demons to handle well. It didn't cause them much harm, but it did make it difficult for them to hold onto their human facades. Faye watched, unnerved, as the demon's eyes began glowing red and his teeth sharpened into points.

"Filthy magic," he spat out. "I haven't heard those disgusting spells in a long time."

"Filthy?!" Faye yelled, outraged at the insult. "You're the filthy one here. If not for your evil presence the spells couldn't be cast in the first place." She shook her hand to dislodge the spell, the bright strings fading into nothing. She needed to get closer before she could attempt the spell again.

The demon regained his composure, smiling and tilting his head before asking, "Are you sure you want to play this game with me?"

Faye felt her heart thump in fear, an emotion she hadn't felt in a long time, and one she didn't appreciate feeling in the least. She took a few steps closer before breaking into a run. She stretched her right hand out and yelled, "Hoctum irarae nym!" The demon jumped back again, but this time a few of the strings caught. He landed on the ground, but his range of movement was far more than it should have been. Her spell wouldn't hold him long. Maybe a change of tactics was in order.

Faye curled her left hand up to her shoulder before flinging it down. The force of the movement dropped a knife out of its holster hidden holster up her sleeve into her hand, handle first. She threw the knife, embedding it into the demon's side. Magic wasn't the only thing the grim reapers had taught her.

The demon looked down at the knife before looking back at Faye and chuckling. "Is that supposed to slow me down?"

Keeping her right hand steady, Faye grabbed another knife from her boot and threw it at the demon's head. The demon calmly brushed his hands down his arms, knocking off the strings with ease before catching the knife mere inches from his face. With a smile he changed his grip on the knife and sent it soaring back towards Faye. Faye dodged to the side, wondering what she should do now.

Thankfully, she didn't have to figure that part out since William appeared at her side before either she or the demon could make another move. "It's over," William said, staring at the demon. "You're quarry has gotten away. You may as well return to your master now."

The demon stared at the two a moment, his eyes still glowing red. Faye tensed, wondering if he would attack again and how well William would do against a demon. However, the demon merely removed the knife in his side, throwing it to the ground before turning and walking away.

Faye closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief, grateful the demon had decided to leave. Faye was used to danger. Helping grim reapers hunt down resisting humans meant to die wasn't exactly easy, but humans she could fight. Her physical attacks were nothing to a demon and her magic wasn't strong enough to hold one. She hoped to never come across another demon as long as she lived.

**Grim Reaper Headquarters **

William walked Faye to her room before bidding her good night. He still had paperwork to fill out on Claude Willamby, but his mind was full of other thoughts. This was the second time Sebastian had tried to kill Grell. It was becoming a nuisance. Not that William was particularly attached to the red head, but his death would cause problems. There'd be paperwork to fill out, explanations to make, and then they'd have to find a replacement which meant having to train another employee from the ground up. Not to mention the effect this was having on current work. It was a waste of time and resources. The Willamby job should already be done and over with, but because William had had to save Grell once again he still had work to do, which meant even more overtime. This situation simply could not continue.

After leaving Grell with the Death Scythe Department (he would have to be demoted again after causing these problems) William had been at a loss as to how to handle the Sebastian issue. However, seeing Faye fight against Sebastian had given him an idea. He hated to inflict this on anyone, but because of Faye's powers and her strength of will he was sure she could handle it. And surely she would understand that the benefits would ultimately outweigh the consequences.


	3. William's Scheme

A/N: This chapter jumps around a lot. Also, I have no idea how accurate my Latin is since I just used Google translate.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye

"Good morning, Faye," William greeted as she left her room.

"Good morning, William. Is there a job you need me for?" Faye asked curiously.

"No, there are no jobs this morning," William replied slowly, still debating whether he should explain things to Faye before or after he cast the spell. Wasn't there some saying about whether it was better to ask for forgiveness instead of permission or to ask for permission rather than forgiveness? It wasn't as though it should affect Faye too much, and it was for the good of the Reaper Society. As an employee he was sure Faye would understand and comply. He wouldn't tell her before she needed to for her own sake. Knowing would just make her nervous and there was no need for her to worry over this.

"How will you be spending your morning?" William inquired.

"I'll be practicing my knife throwing and fighting skills," Faye answered, eyeing him a little oddly. "Are you sure you don't need me for anything?"

"No! Er, I mean no. I appreciate how dutiful you are with your training. I apologize for delaying you."

"That's all right," Faye answered, still eyeing him a little oddly as she left.

William shook his head at his stupidly suspicious behavior. He had wanted to simply go into Faye's room while she was away, but was afraid that she might have returned while he was still there, which would be very difficult to explain. By speaking with her he could ascertain that she would not be back for quite a while, and all he needed was a few minutes.

Making sure the hallway was empty, William entered the room and closed the door behind. He looked around, easily spotting what he needed. Taking a bag out of his pocket he walked over to the vanity mirror and picked up the brush sitting on the dresser. He pulled out most of the hair and placed in the bag. Next he walked over to the lone chair in the room and picked up the shawl draped over it. He frequently saw Faye wearing it and knew she was quite fond of it, which made it perfect for his purposes. He folded the shawl up as small as he could. Tucking it under his arm, he left the room.

**Phantomhive Manor**

"And so you let Grell get away?" Ciel demanded, sitting in his study chair.

"'Let him get away' is a bit of a strong term for what occurred," Sebastian replied. "There was an unforeseen interference that I should have just brushed out of the way. I was caught off guard, I admit, but it will not happen again. I will end the object of the interference next time if need be."

"You had better," Ciel replied. "Grell getting away once is bad enough. For him to get away twice almost makes me question your qualifications as the Phantomhive butler, but we have to push that issue aside for now." Ciel opened a file on his desk and fanned out the pictures within. "Young girls are being kidnapped all over London. I need you to put together a suspect list."

"Yes, my Lord," Sebastian said with a bow before leaving the room.

Ciel got out of his seat to look out the window. It wasn't like Sebastian to fail at any task he gave him, and Ciel was wondering if he should be concerned. Maybe he should have asked what the unforeseen interference had been. He shook his head slightly to get rid of those thoughts. Like he had told Sebastian, they had other concerns at the moment. They had to figure out who was kidnapping those girls. And he had just received word that Elizabeth was missing…

**Outside Grim Reaper Headquarters **

"This is such a pain," a young man with half-blond, half-black hair complained as he kneeled on the ground. "I hate overtime work."

"Quite your complaining, Ronald, and keep drawing that design. Make sure every line is perfect," William chastised. "Doing this will save us overtime work in the future. And likely provide other benefits to the Reaper Society as well."

Ronald pouted as he studied the book in front of him before drawing each line. Finally he asked, "How does Faye feel about having a demon bound to her?"

Unseen by Ronald, William twitched in guilt. "We are not 'binding' a demon to her," he argued.

"We kind of are," Ronald said, sitting back on his knees. "The word 'bind' is in the spell isn't it?"

"It's not like that," William snapped. He pushed his glasses up to regain his composure. "It's not a binding like a contract. The spell will only affect Sebastian. Faye will not be affected at all."

Ronald snorted. "Maybe not, but the spell sure is going to affect her life. Who knows by how much. It's great of her to agree to this. She really has been a great asset to the Reaper Society since she joined. We're lucky to have her."

"Right," William agreed quietly, feeling guiltier with every word out of Ronald's mouth. Maybe William should mention something to Faye…Except maybe the real reason he wasn't telling her was because he was afraid she would refuse. It would be difficult to explain his plan to her. After it was done it would be easier to show her the benefits of what he was doing. And he would make sure she was compensated extra for this.

**Outside Mandalay Manor **

"Sebastian!" Grell called. "I'm ready for my kiss with tongue!"

Sebastian stared at Grell uncomprehendingly. They had just stopped Drocell and saved Elizabeth. Maybe Grell thought he deserved a reward for helping them. Sebastian turned to Ciel. "Would you like me to avenge Madame Red now?"

Grell looked panicked and took a few steps backward. "Er, maybe now's not the right time then?"

Ciel gave Grell a calculating look before looking at Elizabeth in Sebastian's arms. "We're safe now. So put Elizabeth in the carriage and then kill Grell."

"Eep!" Grell turned and took off, his long red coat flapping behind him.

Sebastian gently laid Elizabeth in the carriage before hurrying after Grell. He had a head start, but Sebastian was confident he could catch up to Grell. Sebastian prided his conduct as the Phantomhive butler as perfect. The only single mark against him was the fact that Grell was still alive.

Sebastian smiled as he found the tell-tale red hair and red coat. Grell was jumping from building to building, his little scissors still in his hands.

Grell looked over his shoulder in panic. "Can't we just put this Madam Red business behind us, Sebastian darling? It's standing in the way of our being together! And I helped your master! Doesn't that make us even?"

Sebastian merely smiled and continued his pursuit.

Grell let out a little whimper and changed direction. They were now running through a forest instead of the city. "You asked for this Sebastian!" He yelled. "You gave me no choice but to run here from you!"

Sebastian looked ahead and realized they were almost at The Grim Reaper Dispatch headquarters. Sebastian frowned. Other reapers may come out to help Grell. That could be a problem. He fingered the knives in his pocket. If only ordinary weapons could kill Grell…but it had to be a reaper's death scythe.

Sebastian lunged forward, hoping to reach Grell before he could make it to the doors of the headquarters. Grell reached the front steps. Sebastian stretched his hand forward to grab the end of Grell's coat, but instead his hand slammed into a purple barrier. Sebastian stopped abruptly in surprise. That hadn't been there a moment before. He looked around to see a barrier on all sides as well as above him. Ah. He had fallen into a trap.

"The idiot performed even better than I had hoped," William said, coming out from behind some shrubbery along with a half-blond, half-black haired reaper.

Grell looked back in surprise, his hand about to open the doors. "You're not mad I led Sebastian to our headquarters?" He asked in surprise.

"Normally, I would be furious," William admitted, "but this time you did a good thing. I chose you to investigate Drocell based on the assumption that Ciel and Sebastian would also be looking into the case. I predicted Ciel would once again order your death and that in your desperation you would run here. However, you're still being demoted for being so reckless."

"But-but you planned this!" Grell argued.

"Yes, and I'm grateful for the role you played in my plan. However, that puts you no less at fault for your actions. Your part in this is now done. Go see the Death Scythe Department for another demotion."

Grell pouted as he lifted up has pathetic scissors and opened and closed them. "How could I be demoted even more below this?" William merely stared at Grell until the reaper morosely turned and walked inside.

"Now what's this all about?" Sebastian asked calmly, curious as to what they thought they could do to him. He recognized some of the symbols he saw drawn on the ground, but they could be used for a variety of spells.

Ignoring him, William walked to the North end of the barrier as the other reaper walked to the South.

William spoke first. "Cor illius ut erudiret." Since it was Latin, Sebastian knew what he was saying, which was bind his heart to hers.

The other reaper spoke next, "Mens eius est ut erudiret." Bind his mind to hers.

Now both reapers spoke in unison, "Ligabit ad devotionem eius!" Bind his devotion to her.

Sebastian smiled as he recognized the spell. They were trying to control by making him fall in love with some woman. "Do you really believe this is going to work?" Sebastian asked.

"Only time will tell," William responded, looking intently at Sebastian for a moment before walking off with the half-blond.

Sebastian smirked in self-confidence as the walls of the barrier came down. There was no way this silly spell—Sebastian's thought was cut off as his eyes landed on a shawl placed in the middle of the drawings on the ground. Sebastian frowned as he unwillingly walked towards it. Against his will, his hand reached down to grab the shawl and bring it up to nose. He inhaled deeply. What in the world were these emotions whirring through him?

**Inside Grim Reaper Headquarters**

Faye walked towards her room, covered in a light sheen of sweat. The knife throwing and the fighting was the training she was most grateful for. She loved her magic and the good she was able to do with it, but it was the other training that made her feel safe. She could hardly use her magic if she was in danger while in the city center during broad daylight, after all. She might set off the witch trials again.

After the five months she spent hostage to that occult she wouldn't be able to behave normally without knowing she was capable of defending herself. Faye would never be a victim again.

Once in her room, Faye made a beeline for her brush to get the tangles out of her hair. She frowned when she picked up her brush. Hadn't this been full of hair this morning? Shrugging the thought off, she ran the brush through her hair a couple times. She be mistaken about how much hair was in the brush.

Putting the brush down, Faye turned toward her chair. It was already dark outside, but Faye wanted to take a walk to cool down. She would stick to just around headquarters. She frowned again. Hadn't she put her shawl on her chair? She often liked to take walks after training, and she'd been sure she already had her shawl laid out. Going to her armoire, she checked where the rest of her shawls were. It wasn't there. She checked through all of her cloths, wondering if she had put it in the wrong place. Then she checked on the floor and under her bed.

Stepping back she put her hands on her hips in frustration. Where in the world was her favorite shawl?


	4. Reunion

A/N: Just so there's no confusion, this will follow the anime more than the manga since I'm much more familiar with the anime. And I also might switch around the order of some events to suit my story better.

Thanks to those who commented/followed/faved. I hope this story won't disappoint!

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

**Phantomhive Manor **

"Are you all right, Sebastian?" Ciel asked, eyeing Sebastian suspiciously.

"Whatever do you mean, young master?" Sebastian asked as he poured Ciel's tea.

"You seem a bit distracted lately," Ciel replied, closely watching each of Sebastian's actions.

"I am nothing of the sort. Do you have any complaints over my service?" Sebastian ran his mind over each of his actions for the past week. He couldn't deny that he was becoming increasingly uneasy, but he thought he had been doing a good job of hiding it.

"No, I suppose I don't. However, I've known you long enough to know you are out of sorts, and I don't like it. I don't know what could possibly be bothering you, but whatever it is get it resolved. Soon."

"Of course, my Lord," Sebastian said with a bow. "If you have no further use of me at the moment, I have much work to get done around the manor." It was easy for Ciel to say resolve the problem, Sebastian thought as he left the study. He wasn't pining for a woman he knew nothing about. Yes, Sebastian was pining, loathe as he was to admit it. After returning home from being spelled (and having to admit that he failed to Grell once again) he had been furious. But as time went on he was becoming more desperate to see her. Which was ridiculous seeing as he didn't know who "she" was. What she looked like, how old she was, her personality. He was tempted to break into the Reaper Society and torture William until he brought the woman to Sebastian.

Stepping outside Sebastian froze, than sighed at the mess the shrubbery was in.

Finny looked up guiltily from the bush he was in front of, clippers still in hand. "I'm sorry, sir! I tried my best, I swear!" The bushes had been trimmed haphazardly, with random dips, rises, and holes throughout. And the trees were completely uneven with some branches sticking way out and some being cut quite short.

Sebastian brought his hand to his face and shook his head while sighing. "Go inside, Finny. I will fix this."

"Er, all right, sir. I really am sorry!" He placed the clippers next to Sebastian on his way inside.

Sebastian sighed again as he surveyed the lawn. Perhaps he could turn each of the bushes into the likeness of an animal, and the trees he could shape into interesting geometric designs. Yes, the trees of Phantomhive manor would be the talk of the nobles.

As Sebastian worked his mind turned back to pondering the identity of the woman. There weren't any female reapers, so it couldn't be one of them. But there was that woman who had been working with William…Sebastian fervently hoped it wasn't her. The magic she was using was too "good" and could only be used by someone with an uncorrupted soul. That would just be disgusting if he was longing after her. He supposed she matched human conventional idea of beauty well enough. Long dark hair, deep blue eyes, and a nice body.

Sebastian's cuts with the clippers became sharper. Desiring a human was bad enough, doing so without even knowing who she was or what she looked like was beyond humiliating. He kept her shawl in his bedroom, not even letting the cats he had hidden in there lay on it. The shawl was the only thing he knew of her and it was becoming annoyingly precious to him.

**Grim Reaper Headquarters **

Faye watched in concern as William paced the floor. It wasn't like him at all to show his emotions like this. He was normally so in control. She knew he was upset about the issue he had sent Grell to investigate, but she didn't know any details. William had called Faye into his office to bring her in on the case, but had yet to tell her anything.

"Why don't we start with why you felt a reaper needed to be sent out to investigate?" Faye suggested, hoping to pull William out of his silent reverie.

He paused in his pacing to look at her. He sighed before saying, "Drossel Keinz was an evil man who was reaped years ago. A week ago, his soul appeared on our reaper list again. I hoped it was just a technical error and sent Grell to investigate. What he found was that someone took Drossel's soul and placed it into a puppet. Drossel as a puppet was kidnapping girls and turning them into dolls for his master." William stopped talking and resumed his pacing.

Faye stared out William's window in concern. In her three years working as an associate with the Reaper Society she had never heard of dead souls returning to this world. "Has this happened before?" She asked.

"It's not completely unheard of," William admitted, "but still extremely concerning. There are only a few beings with the power to bring a dead soul back, and I can't think of which would have done this or why. And will they do it again? We need to find the answers to these questions, but the reapers are already overtaxed as things are."

"They are," Faye agreed, wondering where William was going with this. "Do you want me to investigate this on my own?" Faye had never worked on her own before, but nor had she been involved in a situation where the services of a reaper wouldn't be needed soon after she did her part.

William sighed and turned to look out the window. Did he feel guilty for wanting to send Faye by herself? Or did he think she couldn't handle it all on her own?

"No," William finally answered. "I don't want you to investigate this issue by yourself…The demon you met before, Sebastian Michaelis, and his master are adept investigators. Since their paths have already crossed with ours on this assignment, perhaps they would be willing to help us follow this case on to its conclusion."

Faye sat quietly, having nothing to say. She didn't want to see the demon ever again, let alone work with him. Nor did she want to work with a nobleman who sold his soul to a devil. On the other hand, an evil soul being brought back to life and harming young girls was unforgivable. Faye closed her eyes as she steeled her resolve. She would do whatever it took to solve this case. "How soon can we meet with them?"

William turned to face Faye. "I will dispatch a messenger with a letter asking them to meet us tonight. Thank you for being willing to do this. I know dealing with demons is an unsavory business." He was also thinking this would be an opportune time to see what Sebastian's reaction to Faye was.

**Phantomhive Manor **

"You have a letter, my Lord," Sebastian announced as he entered the study room.

"Oh? Is it from the Queen?"

"No. It's from The Grim Reaper Dispatch Society."

"What?" Sebastian asked in surprise, holding his hand out for the letter. He stared at the seal a moment before taking a letter opening and slowly cutting the envelope open. He frowned slightly as he read the letter.

"What is it, my Lord?" Sebastian asked once Ciel had finished reading.

"The Reaper Society would like our help," Ciel answered, tapping the fingers of one hand lightly on his desk. "They want us to work with an associate of theirs to solve the mystery of who brought Drosell back from the dead and ordered him to kidnap those girls." Ciel's mind turned to the creepy doll that called him unclean before fleeing. He wanted to know who had been controlling it. "I think we may benefit from working with them on this. I'll send back a response letting them know we'll meet them tonight. Though I will not work with that imbecile Grell again."

"Very good, my Lord," Sebastian agreed. "Hopefully, this will enable us to find who wished to kidnap you." Given the wording of the letter, Sebastian was quite sure they wouldn't be working with any reaper, let alone Grell. He wondered if the associate spoken of was the woman with the magic. Despite his feelings towards her and her magic, his heart thudded at the thought of maybe meeting the woman he was beginning to obsess over.

**Forest outside Grim Reaper Headquarters **

"What do you know of the nobleman the demon is contracted to?" Faye asked William as they made their way to the meeting place.

"Not much." William admitted. "All I can really tell you is that he is an Earl and that he truly is a superb investigator along with his demon."

Faye hoped this Earl wouldn't be as insufferable as most noblemen were. She had truly developed a distaste for the noble class during the past three years. The reapers were much more equitable in their treatment of each other. Their places in life were based on ability rather than blood, and they didn't act as though the world owed them anything and everything. Though she had committed to doing this, she still felt reluctant to work with her future partners. Hopefully, this investigation wouldn't take too long.

William abruptly put his arm in front of Faye and she jerked to a stop, barely managing to not run into him.

"Let me talk to them first," he said. "I don't know if the demon would want revenge on you for your last altercation, but let me prepare him so he's not caught off guard. You should be able to hear us talking from here and I'll let you know when I want you to join us."

"All right," Faye agreed, feeling even more apprehensive. Though the demon certainly hadn't liked her any more than she liked him, he hadn't seemed terribly interested in revenge. But maybe that was just because he hadn't wanted to deal with William.

"Thank you for meeting us here," Faye heard William say.

"Where is your associate that we'll be working with?" A voice demanded. Faye frowned. The voice sounded like that of a child. How old was the Earl?

"She is close by. Your demon has met her once before and I did not want to surprise him unduly with her presence. I thought it best to let him know she would be helping you first."

"There was no need for your consideration," the demon answered politely. "I figured she was likely the one you spoke of in your letter. Her abilities could be useful in this investigation, and she seems like she could handle herself in a fight. Against humans, anyway."

"Who are you talking about, Sebastian?" the Earl demanded. "When did you meet this woman?"

"She was the unforeseen interference that prevented me from killing Grell," he explained.

"Yes well, she is a valued employee of the Reaper Society," William said. "And I'm sure she'll be a great help to you in solving this case. Allow me to introduce you to Faye." As Faye stepped out of the woods William continued his introductions. "Faye, this is Earl Phantomhive and his butler Sebastian."

If William said anything after that, Faye did not hear it. All her attention was focused on the Earl. Earl Phantomhive. Earl Ciel Phantomhive. Faye's hands came up to her mouth as her legs gave out and she fell to her knees. This wasn't possible. He was dead. Her brother was _dead_.

Ciel appeared similarly shocked, doing nothing but staring at her with a surprised wounded look with one eye, the other being covered by an eye patch.

"Faye. Faye!" Faye finally become aware that William was calling her name when he kneeled in front of her. "Faye, are you all right? What's wrong?"

Sebastian glared at William from a few yards away. It was her. This woman, Faye, was the one he wanted. And for the first time in his long life he found himself somewhat upset by another's tears. He had a vague desire to stop whatever was the cause of them, which irritated him. But what irritated him more was William kneeling in front of _Sebastian's _woman attempting to comfort her. Not that Sebastian really wanted her, of course, but as long as this infernal spell was affecting him, no other man should be allowed to touch her.

"You're dead," he heard his master whisper. Sebastian looked over at Ciel in surprise to see his attention wholly fixed on Faye.

"I could say the same about you," Faye croaked out, tears streaming down her face.

William moved from in front of Faye, looking between Ciel and Faye in confusion.

"Do you two know each other?" Sebastian asked, wondering how Ciel could possibly know this woman.

"Faye," Ciel whispered. "Faye Phantomhive is her full name." Ah. Ciel's sister. Sebastian recalled killing the occultists who had kidnapped her. Apparently, they hadn't killed her, she had escaped. That was mildly impressive.

William looked blankly between Ciel and Faye before his eyes took on a panicked look and he looked nervously at Sebastian and Faye. Sebastian smirked. From the way William was looking at him and Faye, Sebastian was fairly certain Faye was ignorant of the spell that had been cast on Sebastian and the tie that now existed between them. It was a relief to know she was unaware of any sway, no matter how slight, she may have over him. He would have to make sure it stayed that way, which meant keeping her close by and away from the reapers. That should be easy enough. After all, wouldn't the Phantomhive siblings want to stick together after being separated for so long?


	5. Investigation

A/N: Let's hear it for long weekends and being sick giving people lots of time to write! Now that I'm back to a normal schedule the updates probably won't continue to be once a day, but there will be more than one each week.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

Finally, something clicked in Faye's brain from her place on the ground as she looked from her brother to the butler standing next to him. That's how Ciel survived. He would have died at the hands of his kidnappers, but he made a deal with this demon, Sebastian, and so he was still living. Her joy at finding her brother alive came crashing down as she realized that his soul belonged to the demon.

"Why aren't you using our last name?" Ciel demanded.

"What?" Faye asked in confusion, feeling that question was hardly important given all the other questions they could be asking each other.

"I too am curious about the answer to that," William said as he adjusted his glasses. "From the moment you joined the Reaper Society, Faye is the only name you've ever given. Why hide your last name?"

"I don't know that 'hiding' is the right word," Faye said as she wiped her eyes and stood up. "After what happened, I saw no reason to continue on as being a Phantomhive. Our parents were murdered, our manor burned down, and I was sure that you were dead as well. There was nothing left for me as a Phantomhive. When I escaped the occult that held me hostage, William found me and offered me a job with the reapers. Just being Faye was fine for my new life."

"Why would the reapers offer you employment?" Ciel asked.

"Ciel, you sound as though you're unhappy to see me," Faye said breathlessly. His questions felt like they were shooting out like gunshots. All she wanted to do was hold her brother and affirm that he was alive. It seemed all he wanted was answers to questions.

A hurt look entered his eyes. "That's not it," he whispered. "I just want to understand how you're still alive and where you've been all this time. I'm just shocked."

"I feel the same," Faye said. "Though some of my questions about how you're alive have already been more or less answered." Her eyes turned back to Sebastian, who was watching her in return.

"Don't judge me!" Ciel exclaimed, his cheeks flushing. "You have no idea what happened! And I wouldn't be here if it weren't for Sebastian, would you rather I be dead?"

"I wasn't trying to judge you," Faye said gently. "I am beyond happy to see you again, little brother."

"Brother," William stated. Faye looked over at him in surprise. He had a carefully blank look on his face. "You are Faye Phantomhive and Ciel is your younger brother."

"Yes," Faye said slowly, thinking that had already been established for a few minutes now. "Is that a problem?"

"Of course not," William said, giving himself a little shake. "But I'm afraid we've gotten far off topic now. I understand you two may need some time together to process this discovery, but might we finish this meeting first?"

"Yes," Faye agreed, thinking it was just like William to only be thinking of business during an emotional time like this. "I would like to visit Mandalay Manor and learn exactly what happened there, if you two wouldn't mind taking me."

"Yes, that's fine," Ciel said, looking at the ground rather than at her. Faye felt tears threatening to fall. It really seemed as though Ciel wasn't happy to find Faye alive. But maybe he thought she was disappointed or angry with him for contracting with a demon. Faye was…well, she didn't know how she felt about it. Before knowing that the Earl was Ciel she both pitied and looked down on someone who would sell their soul to a demon, but knowing that it was Ciel and having a small idea of what he must have gone through after the fire…did that make it okay in any way?

"Our carriage is this way, my Lady," the demon said with a small bow and an elegant gesture. Faye should probably start thinking of him as Sebastian rather than the demon since she was going to be working with him on this case and since he was Ciel's butler, but she really didn't want to. Being in the presence of a demon still made her very unhappy.

"Thank you," she said with a polite nod. She could still act civil. Maybe.

In the carriage Sebastian and Ciel sat on one side with Faye on the other. Faye's heart ached at the awkward silence. She and Ciel used to talk together for hours. There was five years between them, but they had always been close. When Ciel had been told he was going to marry Elizabeth as a small child his first response had been that he wanted to marry Faye instead. Eventually he warmed to the idea, but the two were always closer to each other than anyone else. She hardly expected everything to be the same after almost three and a half years apart, but to not even have anything to say to each other…

"We're here," Sebastian announced as the carriage stopped. Getting out first, he offered his hand to help Faye down. Faye ignored his outstretched hand and held on to the side of the carriage as she stepped down.

She looked up at the manor in consternation. The place looked like it belonged in a scary story. It was the perfect setting to kidnap little girls and turn them into dolls.

"Is the puppet that housed Drossel Keinz's soul still here?" Faye asked.

"We did not do anything with it," Sebastian replied. "Would you like us to take you to it?"

"Yes." Her nature made it a struggle not add 'thank you' on to the end of that statement, but being polite to a demon was like pulling teeth. She didn't want to do it more than she felt she had to.

Inside the front room a broken doll was splayed across the floor. Faye looked away, remembering that that doll had once been a little girl. A girl whose life was ended by whoever brought Drossel's soul back from the afterlife. They needed to find that person and stop them. That thought brought a question to Faye's mind.

"Ciel?" She asked.

"Yes?" He responded, still not looking at her.

"What brought you and your butler here? Why were you looking into this?"

Ciel stopped in surprise. He looked back at Faye and said, "Because the Phantomhives are the Queen's watch dog. She asked us to look into this."

The words 'But you're only a child' were on the tip of Faye's tongue before she realized that probably wasn't the best thing to say. If Ciel was an Earl that meant he was acting as the head of the Phantomhive household. That supposedly meant he was running the household, in charge of the Funtom Company, and, apparently, acting as the Queen's watch dog. Ciel had probably not seen himself as a child for a long time. She did not approve of the queen sending her thirteen-year-old brother into the English criminal underworld, though with a demon as a butler Ciel was probably one of the safest people in the world. Until the demon ate his soul, that is.

"There is Drossel," Ciel said, pointed to an orange-haired puppet with straw spilling out of it. "Why did you want to see him?"

"I'm hoping I can use this puppet as a trace back to its master," Faye said, lifting her skirts as she stepped over debris to get to the puppet. "If Drossel was an evil soul, and an evil soul is the one who placed Drossel in this puppet, I may be able to do it. If there's any trace left after a week has gone by, that is. It may be too late."

"Trace? What do you mean by trace?"

"She means by magic, my Lord," Sebastian answered, taking a few steps back.

"Faye doesn't have magic," Ciel argued, looking at Faye for confirmation.

"I _didn't _have magic," Faye clarified. "That has changed in the time we've been away from each other, brother." Faye held her right hand over the puppet, fingers splayed. The spell to trace the actions of an evil soul back to the soul was simple, but there was only a small window of opportunity where it would work. "Mirai nostu ectum," the resonant quality Faye's voice normally took on when she performed spells was far more subdued this time. A brightly colored wash of light spread from Faye's hand to the puppet before flickering and disappearing. "Tch. We're too late."

"What about the dolls?" Ciel asked. "Would your spell work with them?"

"We may as well try."

Ciel led her to a room full of broken dolls. Broken girls, Faye corrected herself. These were girls that had been murdered. There were at least fifteen. The sheer number would help to increase the strength of the spell, even if it had been a while.

Spreading her right hand out again Faye chanted, "Mirai nostu ectum." Out of the corner of her eye Faye noticed Sebastian flinching as he lifted a hand to his eyes. He had done the same thing a few moments earlier. "Are you afraid of your true form showing through or does the light bother you that much?" Faye mocked.

Sebastian lowered his hand and smiled at Faye. "Your brother is just as much in the dark as I am."

Faye's left hand curled into a fist as she glared at the demon.

"Faye! Concentrate!" Ciel chastised. Faye flinched at his tone. Her brother had never spoken to her in that tone of voice before. She'd never heard her brother speak to anyone in that tone of voice before.

Faye focused on the magic spreading out from her hand. It flowed around the girls and rose into the air before disappearing. Faye sighed as she put her hand down. "It's no good. I can sense a dark and twisted intent, but that's all. I can't get a good sense of who was behind this."

"Then I guess we should leave," Ciel said. "This house is no longer of any use to us." Faye waited for Ciel to lead the way out, but instead he stayed where he was. Was he waiting for someone to agree they should leave? Maybe now might be a good time for them to talk. Faye wasn't sure when she might see Ciel again, though she hoped it was soon.

"Do you know anything about those who I was sold to?" Faye asked.

"Yes," Ciel admitted, staring at the wall behind Faye. "It was an occult that believed that raping young women while performing strange rituals gave them power."

Faye was surprised at Ciel's response. Since he had survived she wondered if he had looked into what happened to her, but hadn't expected such a detailed response. "How do you know all that?"

"Because we hunted the whole group down and killed them," he answered, looking Faye in the eye.

"Ah." Faye wasn't sure how to respond to that. She was glad those men wouldn't hurt anyone else, but she hadn't been hoping for revenge. She was tempted to ask Ciel if killing the occultists had brought her back or changed what happened to her, but decided her relationship with him was too fragile at the moment for her to challenge him on this. "Well, the rituals they did opened up my ability to do magic. William told me it's rare for this to happen. Probably none of the other victims became capable of using magic. Shortly after I escaped I ran into William while he was reaping a soul. He was able to recognize my ability to use magic, and he offered me a job helping the Reaper Society to take out troublesome evil souls who try to escape their fate. So that's where I've been and what I've been doing for the past three years."

Faye clasped her hands shyly in front of her and gently asked, "What about you, Ciel? What happened to you?"

Ciel's eye darkened and he looked away from her again. "I was also sold to an occult group. There I was treated like less than an animal. I was tortured for a month before they decided to sacrifice me. In my rage and despair I summoned Sebastian. We created a contract that if he would destroy all those responsible for the ruin and humiliation of the Phantomhive name I would give him my soul." Ciel turned a challenging look on Faye. "That's what I've been doing for the past three years. Sebastian killed those who took me and those who took you. Now I'm acting at the head of the Phantomhive household to draw out whoever is ultimately responsible for our pain."

"I see," Faye said, staring down at her clasped hands. "So you didn't summon Sebastian to save you, but for revenge."

"No!" Ciel burst out, surprising Faye. "Not for revenge, but for my own personal wants. Those who took everything from me will suffer the same humiliation and outrage. Nothing will turn me from this course, not even you being alive!"

Faye felt her heart breaking at her brother's rage and pain. He had always been such a sweet child. It was so easy to make him smile or laugh. She had rarely seen him angry. Now he was someone she didn't recognize.

"So what will you do now?" Ciel asked abruptly.

Faye looked up at Ciel in surprise. What will she do now? The only thought she'd had for changes in her life was that she wanted Ciel to be in it now that she knew he was alive. Did he mean something beyond that? "I want to be with you," Faye said carefully, not sure how Ciel would react to that. Her brother's time in this world was limited, she didn't know by how much, but she did know she that she wanted to be part of it until the end. Ciel was the only family she had. And while she was exceedingly grateful to the reapers and loved working with them, people who are supposed to be emotionless don't make for the greatest friends. She enjoyed their company well enough, but she missed interaction with people she cared about and who cared about her. Plus, sometimes she worried she was becoming too much like the reapers with their emotionlessness. She now had a dynamite poker face.

"There's plenty of room for you at the mansion," Ciel said, staring at the floor. "You could have your old room back. It should be pretty much as you left it."

"My old room?" Faye asked in confusion, thinking of her last sight of Phantomhive manor as it went up in flames.

"That's right, you don't know. Sebastian rebuilt the manor exactly as it was before. Everything is the same as it was when we were growing up. You could come back with us tonight. With your magic, you can help with the Phantomhive work as the Queen's watch dog. And if you have any interest in the company you can help with that. It's doing very well."

An offer of a job and a home. Perhaps Ciel was happier to see Faye than she thought. Though if she was going to be helping Ciel that meant she was going to have to stop helping the reapers. That thought hurt. Working for The Grim Reaper Dispatch Society had been her whole life for three years, but hearing that the mansion had been rebuilt gave her a longing for home she had not felt in a long time.

"Thank you for the offer of bringing me back tonight, Ciel, but I have a few loose ends at the reaper office I need to tie up, and I'd rather give them my leave of notice in person and thank them for all that they've done for me. I'll arrange to be brought to the Phantomhive manor tomorrow afternoon."

"Are you sure you do not wish to come back with us tonight?" Sebastian asked, fearful that William would tell her about the spell. "It is quite late."

"Yes," Faye responded flatly. "I'm sure."

"All right," Ciel said with a nod. "We'll drop you off then."


	6. Home Again

Disclaimer: I only own Faye

**William's Office **

William glared a little as he worked to complete the massive pile of paperwork on his desk. Hopefully, he would get some sleep tonight. That silly biological need really did get in the way of things. If the paperwork kept mounting up like this he was going to need to hire an assistant. Maybe he could ask Faye to start helping out. It wasn't conventional, but she was very smart and very active in the Reaper Society.

His thoughts where interrupted when a knock came at his door. He looked up in surprise, wondering who might be coming by so late. "Come in."

Faye entered slowly and gingerly sat down in the chair in front of William's desk. That wasn't like her. Normally she was quite confident. Had she injured herself? Or had things not gone well tonight? "Are you well?" He asked.

"Ah, well I have some things I need to tell you."

"Did something happen tonight? Were you able to learn anything?"

Faye's nervous look turned professional as she talked about the case. "No. I had very little luck in trying to trace anything from Mandalay Manor back to whoever orchestrated that mess. All my spells did was show me that whoever is behind all this has a very dark and twisted intent, and I hardly needed a spell to tell me that. It was a complete dead end, I'm afraid."

"And you wanted to come here tonight to report that?" William asked, confused. Faye was always prompt with her work, but this seemed like something that could have waited until morning.

"Not quite." She paused as she seemed to gather her thoughts. "First off, let me tell you that I plan to follow this case to the end. I will let you know everything that I find and the outcome of the investigation...but I'm afraid I will no longer be investigating this as an employee of The Grim Reaper Dispatch Society."

"What do you mean?" William asked with a frown. He knew that Faye had been unhappy about working with a demon, but to go this far…Or maybe she had learned about the spell and was angry enough to quit.

"Ciel invited me to come back to Phantomhive Manor and help him with his duties there." Faye looked down at her hands, intertwining her fingers as she talked. "I realize that Ciel's life will only last until he and the demon find whoever was behind the attack on our family, but I want to spend as much time with him as I can. He's the only family I have left."

So this was a family matter. It was upsetting to lose Faye, but this was better than having her quit over being upset.

"I'm sorry to leave on such short notice," Faye said, looking back up at William. "I'm truly grateful for all that you and the Reaper Society have done for me. All the training and the good I've been able to do. I've greatly enjoyed working here. I couldn't have asked for a better experience. I've learned a great deal about the world and myself. Thank you, William."

"You're welcome. Thank you for your service to the Grim Reaper Society. You are, or were, one of my best employees. I am sorry to see you go." Should he tell her? Now that she would be living with the demon, things might get more complicated than William had foreseen. Though maybe since she was leaving the society it was best not to tell her. Those benefits of the spell he had been going to explain to her didn't really apply now that she no longer worked for the Reaper Society. And living with her brother she may actually support Ciel's desire to see Grell dead.

"Well then, I'll be going to bed now. I'll pack all my things in the morning and say my goodbyes. Then I'll be off." Faye stood up, smoothing her skirt down before walking out the door.

"Ah—" William wasn't sure what he would have said if Faye had stopped, but he was too late and she was already gone. He felt guilty, but tried to convince himself everything would be fine. After all, a demon would be too proud to admit he was in love with a human with no one pushing the issue as William had planned to do. Right?

**Phantomhive Carriage **

"You seem a bit nervous," Sebastian commented to Ciel as they drove home after dropping Faye off.

Ciel looked over from where he was fidgeting with his walking stick. "I'm not nervous," he denied, laying the walking stick down next to him. "I had been hoping tonight would get us some answers and am disappointed that none were forthcoming."

"Of course," Sebastian placated, knowing Ciel was lying. To be honest, Sebastian was at least half as nervous as the boy. He wasn't sure how to feel about Faye moving in with them. Part of him wanted Faye near him so he could be close to her and make sure no other man touched her. Another part was afraid of what would happen with her being so close. Would the spell gain more power if Sebastian was in closer proximity to Faye? Or would getting to know her better increase his feelings for her?

He wasn't sure what he thought of her so far (other than hating her magic). She seemed in turns both fragile and confident. Though, all her fragile moments were related to her brother, indicating that she was normally a confident person but out of her element as to how to deal with a brother completely changed from the one she remembered.

Sebastian resisted the urge to lash out. This was ridiculous. He hated feeling conflicted and muddled. Especially over a soul like Faye's. It wasn't pure, but it was very good. He was afraid it might taint (or un-taint as the case may be) her brother's delicious soul. How was he supposed to handle this problem?

**Phantomhive Manor **_Next Morning _

"Not there!" Ciel yelled as Baldroy started to put a vase of flowers down on a side table in the entryway. "They have to be where she can see them when she comes in. What's the point of having her favorite flowers if she doesn't see them?"

"Er-right, sir. So, where would you like them?"

Ciel paused a moment, realizing there were no other tables to place a vase on. He knew he was being ridiculous, but he wanted everything perfect for his sister's return home. The night before he had been a little disappointed that she didn't return immediately, but now he was glad. This way there was time to prepare. "Place the tables on either side of stairway, then put the flowers on them."

"Ooooh, this is so exciting!" Finny burst out as he carried one of the tables over. "To have the master's sister come live with us. I hope she's nice!"

"Well, we all love the master and she's the master's sister," Baldroy grunted as he moved the other table. "So whether she's nice or not we'll have to fake like we like her, but who knows what she'll be like? Where's she been all those years and why's she just shown up now?"

"What are you two gossiping for?" Mey-Rin demanded as she walked by. "There's work to be done! You two can blather about later." She lowered her voice as she leaned in closer, "And don't you go saying anything rude about the master's sister, you hear?"

"Yeah, yeah," Baldroy said as he adjusted his cigarette. "I wasn't sayin' nothin' bad, I was just doing some speculatin' that's all."

"Are you sure Faye's room is clean?" Ciel demanded as Sebastian came down the stairs.

"Completely spotless," Sebastian promised, though Ciel still had a desire to go check for himself despite knowing Sebastian's work was always perfect. Ciel was grateful now that he hadn't changed Faye's room at all. He had been tempted to when he returned, not wanting to be sentimental. He had changed their parent's room, but whenever he walked into his sister's room he couldn't make himself do it. He had spent a lot of time there as a child. Going there when he was scared at night and their parents were away, being read to there by Faye before bed, and sitting on her bed while she got ready for parties once she was old enough to go.

Things were probably going to be awkward between them. Who he was now barely resembled who he was before, and the sister he remembered was always smiling and laughing. Of course, Faye might still be like that for all Ciel knew. Last night they had been investigating a murderer with frightening capabilities. Those were hardly ideal circumstances for getting to know someone's personality. However, the point was that though things may be awkward he could at least make the manor perfect for her.

Now he needed to go check on the dinner preparations and make sure all Faye's favorite foods were there. He hoped he had remembered them well enough.

Later that day Ciel called the household to order when Sebastian informed him that Faye's carriage was about to arrive. "Everyone line up," he called, his heart fluttering nervously. He wished he could calm down. It was just his sister. Except, it wasn't. As wonderful as his parents had been, the noble class had a tendency to delegate the raising of their children. Ciel had largely been raised by Tanaka and Faye. When Sebastian freed him from the occult he had held on to hope that he would find Faye alive, and been bitterly crushed when he believed her dead. Now she was back, but what would their relationship be like?

Baldroy, Finnian, Mey-Rin, and Tanaka lined up near the front of the door. Sebastian stood to the side, prepared to open the door. Ciel took a deep breath and stood as tall as he could.

There was a soft knock at the door and Sebastian pulled it open. Faye stepped in with two bags of luggage. Ciel immediately wanted to kick himself. Of course, she had luggage! He should have Sebastian out to help her with them! Before he could berate himself more, Faye dropped the luggage and threw herself at Tanaka.

"Tanaka! You're alive!" She cried, wrapping her arms around him. "Ciel, you didn't tell me!"

Ciel realized that Faye's last sight of Tanaka had been when Tanaka was stabbed trying to protect Ciel from being kidnapped. Given what Tanaka meant to their family he could understand her reaction, but still…she had yet to hug Ciel since they found each other again.

Baldroy, Mey-Rin, and Finny looked on in surprise as Faye hugged Tanaka. It wasn't everyday they saw one of the noble class hugging a servant. Finny smiled and turned to Bard. "She looks pretty nice to me."

"Yeah well, I guess," Bard agreed, scratching the back of his head.

Tanaka gave a small laugh as he gently disentangled himself. "It is good to see you too, my Lady. I'm glad you are safe."

"I understand your joy and finding one you care for safe," Sebastian said with a polite smile, "but it's hardly appropriate for one of your class to display such affections openly." Tanaka gave a small nod, signaling his agreement.

"I haven't been a noblewoman for the past three years," Faye said. "And I fail to see what my class has to do with whether or not I show my affection to those I love in my own home."

There was an awkward silence until Sebastian asked, "Shall I take your things to your room, my Lady?"

"No!" Faye exclaimed, not wanting a demon touching her things as well as not wanting him to know what was in her bags. Faye flushed as everyone looked at her in surprised confusion. Of course, everyone except Ciel would believe that Sebastian was merely an exceedingly competent butler. They didn't know what he really was and here she was making scene.

"I apologize. I'm not used to others doing things for me, and everything in those bags I earned with my own hands. They're precious to me." She hoped that was a semi-believable explanation for her outburst.

"Of course," Sebastian said with a smile. "I will handle them with the utmost care." He easily picked up both bags in one hand and carried them up the stairs.

"I have been remiss in introductions with all this excitement," Ciel said in a subdued voice. "This is Baldroy, our chef; Finnian, our gardener; and Mey-Rin, our maid."

"It's lovely to meet you, my Lady!" They said in unison, executing bow together.

Faye smiled, charmed by their attitude. "Thank you, it's lovely to meet you all as well."

"Shall we have lunch now?" Ciel asked, offering Faye his arm.

"Of course."

"If all your clothing is from your time working with…the society, we're going to need to get you more suitable dresses as soon as possible. The Phantomhives have many functions they must attend, and I'm sure your return will bring a flurry of invitations."

"I suppose your right," Faye said with a smile. Inside she was dreading attending any high society functions. The noble class was so full of arrogant, conceited people so sure that the world owed them everything. She had not missed having to rub elbows with those sorts of people while she was gone. Though perhaps she had once resembled them somewhat. Faye had the feeling she's soon be longing for the company of the grim reapers.

Sebastian placed Faye's bags on the floor of her room, giving them a considering look. As the Phantomhive butler it was his duty to put the Lady's things away for her, but she undoubtedly did not want Sebastian touching any of it. That thought sent a small pang of hurt through his chest, making him smile.

Being immortal truly got old after a while. The same monotonous life century after century. Being contracted to Ciel and brought him amusement like he hadn't experienced in a long time, and now he was beginning to relish these unfamiliar feelings the spell was giving him. The hurt when Faye obviously wanted nothing to do with him, desire for her, wanting to please another and be pleased by them…it looked like the Phantomhives would provide Sebastian with great entertainment.

With a smirk Sebastian began unpacking Faye's bags. She would undoubtedly be outraged, but she was going to have to get used to Sebastian's presence in her life as he wasn't going anywhere. He paused when he came to a rather large selection of knives. He smiled as he remembered her throwing knives at him with surprising accuracy a few weeks earlier. Had she been afraid of him finding these? The only problem he saw with them was that he didn't know where to place them. He'd have to get her a special drawer for her to put the knives in.


	7. Elizabeth

A/N: Thank you very much to author12306 for pointing out that Finny's full name is Finnian and not Finnigan as I wrote in the last chapter.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye

**Phantomhive Manor**

Mey-Rin stood timidly outside Faye's bedroom door. It was Faye's first morning in the manor and Mey-Rin wasn't quite sure what to do. As the maid she was pretty sure she was supposed to help Faye get ready in the morning. Kind of like what Sebastian did for Ciel. Mey-Rin mentally went over the list of things she thought she was supposed to do. Help the Lady get dressed. Make the Lady's bed. Take care of the Lady's night cloths. Should she have brought tea?

The door opened while Mey-Rin dawdled and she jumped back with a surprised yell.

"I'm sorry," Faye said, looking a little alarmed. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"No not at all, Miss!" Mey-Rin argued, noting with consternation that Faye was already dressed for the day. "It's completely my fault!" Peeking over Faye's shoulder she could see that the bed was already made as well. Drat. What was Lady Faye doing up so early in the morning? Sebastian had just barely gone to wake the Master up and here his sister was all ready for the day.

"Is there something I can help you with?" Faye asked.

"No! Nope, all good here. I just wanted to let you know that breakfast will be outside in half an hour."

Faye smiled softly. "That sounds lovely. Thank you for letting me know, Mey-Rin."

"You're welcome!" The Master's sister truly did seem like a lovely woman. Mey-Rin would arrive earlier the next morning so she could help Faye out as a proper maid should.

Breakfast was a quiet affair. Faye and Ciel couldn't seem to think of a single thing to say to each other, which was ridiculous since they hadn't seen each other in over three years. Then again, that was a big part of the problem. They had both changed a lot during that time and were virtual strangers now. They had greeted each other when they both came to breakfast, but not much had been said since then. At least, not until Faye looked out over the grounds.

"What is _that?_" Faye demanded. She had been about to take a drink of her tea, but put it down as she stared out into the yard with a horrified look on her face.

Ciel turned to see what she was looking at. "Oh, that's our guard dog. Pluto. I thought you liked dogs, Faye."

"Dog? That is _not _a dog, Ciel. That is a monstrosity."

"Might you prefer cats instead?" Sebastian asked with a smile as he topped off her tea.

"Yes," Faye answered, looking at the demon suspiciously. Why would he care? "I had one until Ciel was born and it became apparent he was allergic. Though as Ciel said, I am normally fond of dogs. Wherever did you find that thing?"

"In Houndsworth," Ciel said casually. "It's a demon hound."

Faye looked out at the dog unhappily. She had never heard of a demon hound before, but wasn't having a demon butler bad enough? "What in the world do the other servants think of it?" She asked quietly. That thing obviously wasn't normal.

"They're used to seeing things out of the ordinary," Ciel said calmly. "He does make a wonderful guard dog, Faye, and he simply loves Sebastian. Finny also does a good job handling him."

She couldn't say she was surprised that a demon dog loved a demon butler, but she wondered how the small gardener she had met the night before could possibly handle it. Maybe Finnian simply had a way with animals.

"Would you like to know your schedule for the day, my Lady?" Sebastian asked.

"I'm sorry, what?" Faye asked, turning to look the butler in the eye for the first time that morning.

"Your schedule, my Lady. It's not too full since you just got back, but there is much to be done."

Faye looked over at Ciel, wondering if he had instructed the demon to plan out Faye's day for her, but he appeared immersed in the newspaper lying next to his plate. "You are my brother's butler," Faye stated flatly. "There's no need for you to concern yourself over me."

"On the contrary, my Lady, I am the _Phantomhive _butler. That means that both of you are my concern."

Faye rather doubted the demon really meant that. It was Ciel's soul the demon wanted, so surely Ciel was his sole focus. "I'm sure Tanaka can manage my days just fine." It seemed strange for Tanaka to no longer be the head butler of the Phantomhive household. That's how it had been all Faye's life. She wondered how he felt about being replaced with someone younger. Tanaka had probably accepted the change with the decorum he always showed.

"I'm afraid Tanaka is busy with being the executive director of the Phantom Company. While he has become no less important to the Phantomhive household, his role is much changed from what you remember. Now, the young master has told me that you were once a capable violinist, so this morning I'm having Mrs. Winston come over to give you a refresher course. This afternoon will be taken up with building up your wardrobe. You need dresses, jackets, shawls, shoes, stockings, and a variety of jewelry, of course. The cloths you brought with you work well enough for everyday attire, but a true Phantomhive must be properly attired when it comes to social functions."

Faye bit back the urge to comment on the demon knowing all about her wardrobe seeing as he had gone through everything she owned the day before. She had not been pleased, but decided picking a fight with a demon over him putting her things away was probably not the best idea.

"And what of this evening?" Faye asked, wondering if she could find a nice place to practice her knife throwing on the Phantomhive grounds. Just because she would no longer be working with the Grim Reaper Society was no reason to let her skills get rusty.

"After a formal dinner with your brother you'll have some free time, though I would not get used to having such a lax schedule."

This situation could not continue. Faye realized butlers were meant to set-up their master's days, but she objected to having a demon run her life. Before Faye could start to think of a polite way to tell Ciel to make his butler leave her alone there was an elated cry of, "Ciel!"

Faye startled, having not heard that particular cry in a very long time. Ciel looked up from his newspaper at Faye, a panicked look on his face.

Elizabeth Midford came charging down the terrace brick to throw her arms around Ciel, nearly choking him in the process. "Ciel, I've missed you so—" Elizabeth turned a puzzled look on Faye who smiled at her. "Who are—" As recognition set in, Elizabeth's face turned white.

"Elizabeth," Ciel said calmly, removing her arms from around his neck, "Faye has returned. As you can see." He gave an awkward cough as silence set in and Elizabeth continued to look as though she had seen a ghost.

"But where did she come from?"

Faye turned to look at Ciel, wondering if he had already thought of that. Of course, they would need a story to explain Faye's sudden reappearance and where she had been all this time. Optimally, the explanation would be one that didn't damage her reputation.

"She has been traveling," Sebastian explained easily. Both Faye and Ciel turned incredulous looks on Sebastian. "Lady Faye barely escaped the fire that burned the original mansion down. Afterwards, believing herself to be the only member of her family alive and that she was in danger after the Phantomhive household had so obviously been targeted, she fled. Recently, she came across an article detailing information about her brother in relation to the Phantom Company expanding into selling food. The moment she read it she immediately made arrangements to return home."

"But, Ciel, why didn't you tell me?" Elizabeth asked, tilting her head to the side.

"He didn't know," Faye explained, jumping in. "I'm afraid I made my reappearance without sending any warning first. I just arrived last afternoon."

"So it really is you then?" Elizabeth asked softly, walking around the table to where Faye was sitting.

"Yes, Elizabeth it really is me. I apologize for being away so long."

Elizabeth hesitantly wrapped her arms around Faye before squeezing her tight. "But why didn't you let my family know you were alive?" She cried. "You may have though you lost Ciel and your parents, but you still had us!"

Faye's first cynical thought was that not knowing who had targeted the Phantomhive household she couldn't trust anyone. What she said was, "I was afraid that it might put you in danger. I know that your father is the head knight of England and your family plenty capable of protecting themselves, but I couldn't stand it if what happened to my family happened to yours as well."

"Oh, Faye!" Elizabeth cried, hugging her tighter. "It's okay, we're all together again. And we should celebrate!" Elizabeth pulled back from the hug and turned to Ciel. "I have a great idea! We should hold a ball in Faye's honor! And we should do it this Saturday!" She started to twirl around in excitement. "We can hold it at Midford Manor! I'm sure my parents would be happy to. They'll be so excited to see you."

A ball where Faye would be the focus was the last thing she wanted, but it would be rude if she refused and something like this would probably have to happen sooner or later. It was better to simply get it over with now. "That sounds like a wonderful idea."

"You don't sound very excited," Elizabeth declared.

"That's because balls are a pain," Ciel said drolly as he went back to reading his newspaper.

"Ciel! That is not true. And you'll be there as well, won't you?"

"Yes, I'll be there as well," he sighed.

Faye looked down at her food sadly. Ciel and Elizabeth used to be such a good match. They were both bright and happy children. Now they appeared to be opposites with Ciel so stern and cynical. Elizabeth didn't seem to mind too much though.

"I think it is a great idea," Sebastian chimed in. "It's a good thing we're having a seamstress come over this afternoon. We'll be able to get Faye a fine gown for the ball at Midford Manor."

"Ooo, that's perfect!" Elizabeth squealed. "Can I stay and help?"

"Of course," Faye replied.

"Oh, it will be so much fun! I can help you choose what colors and styles. And I'll fill you in on all the latest fashions!"

Faye enjoyed her cousin's excitement, but she wondered if she had ever been like that. So chipper and full of vain thoughts. Ciel wasn't the only one who had become more serious in the past three years.

"This blue looks so lovely next to your light skin and dark hair," Elizabeth crooned as she held material up to Faye's face. "And look at this green! This purple!"

"They're all great colors," Faye agreed, not caring near as much as Elizabeth seemed to.

"Look at these styles," Elizabeth urged, holding up a book of examples for Faye to look at. "This layered look is in vogue in some circles and I think it would look really cute on you." Elizabeth gasped, "Look at these sleeves, they're just to die for!"

"They all look fine," Faye said, more than happy to let Elizabeth make all the decisions. At least one of them was excited about it. "My only requirement is that all of the dresses have pockets at hip level. On both sides."

Elizabeth and the seamstress looked at Faye in surprise. "Why would you want pockets?" Elizabeth asked.

"They would ruin the line of the dress," the seamstress argued.

"The existence of pockets is easy enough to hide," Faye countered, speaking from personal experience. "If you are unable to design a dress with pockets without ruining the dress, I'm sure I can find someone who can."

The seamstress paled and turned back to the cloth in front of her. "I'm sure I can manage," she mumbled.

Elizabeth looked at her uncertainly, but Faye refused to return the look. She could never explain to Elizabeth why she needed pockets in her dresses. Well, not pockets really, but holes. Holes located right above where she kept the knives strapped to her thighs. Some may see it as overkill, but Faye always kept a knife strapped to each forearm, two to each thigh, and a knife in each boot. You never knew when you might need to defend yourself. Before it was as an employee of the Grim Reaper Society and now it would be as the Queen's watchdog along with her brother. Such activities tended to attract trouble. Of course, she could hardly ask for holes to be put into her dress. She would just cut out the bottom of the pockets once the dresses were done.

"Faye," Elizabeth murmured as the seamstress started cutting material. Faye looked over, surprised at her cousin's quiet tone. Elizabeth gestured for Faye to come over to a corner with her.

Faye followed, wondering what this could be about. "Have you—" Elizabeth began before awkwardly breaking off. She stared down at her shoes, twisting one foot back and forth. "I mean—" Elizabeth broke off again before sighing. "I was going to ask if you've noticed a difference in Ciel, but I'm sure you have. How could you miss it? Ciel is so different from how he used to be." Elizabeth's lower lip trembled as she began to cry. "After the fire, Ciel disappeared for a month. I was so happy when he came back, but he came back missing an eye and missing his smile. He never smiles anymore. I did all I could to act like I always had, hoping that it would bring back the old Ciel, but it never worked."

Elizabeth stared wistfully past Faye as though imaging a happier Ciel. "Maybe now that your back, Phantomhive manor can become a place of smiles again." She looked up at Faye hopefully.

Faye didn't know how to respond. She'd like to think that her being back would make her brother happier, but the way he acted when they first met…She was sure it was just due to shock, but she wasn't sure what to do with him. Faye was afraid that Ciel would push away any show of affection from her. As though he would see it as a weakness to accept it, or like he would take it as Faye treating him like a child.

There was also the fact that Faye wasn't sure how capable Ciel was of being happy with how obsessed he appeared with revenge. To have enough rage and hatred to be able to summon a demon at only ten years old, Faye never would have thought her little brother capable of such a feat. And Faye was no longer the ever cheerful young woman she used to be either.

But how could Faye be anything but encouraging to the hopeful young girl in front of her? She reached forward to grab Elizabeth's hands and said, "We will try our best to help Ciel be happy."

A/N: Next time, the ball! And finally some real interaction between Faye and Sebastian.


	8. The Ball

A/N: *sigh* Not as much Faye and Sebastian interaction as I'd originally been hoping for in this chapter. Faye's just too stubborn for them to move at any pace other than slow. Blame William for teaching her to share his disgust of demons.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

**Phantomhive Manor **

There was a lot of muttering coming from behind her, Faye thought as Mey-Rin attempted to do up the back of Faye's dress. Per Elizabeth's instructions, Faye was wearing the blue dress with a layered front skirt and elaborate ties in the back. Faye had done her own hair, but couldn't possibly hope to do up the back of the dress. Mey-Rin had been overjoyed when Faye asked for help, but she seemed to be struggling a great deal.

Mey-Rin finally pulled back with a frustrated sigh. "Well, it's done?"

Faye wondered at the question in Mey-Rin's voice and walked over to the full length mirror in her room, turning so she could see the back of the dress. It was an absolute mess. The whole back of the dress looked like one giant knot. Obviously, knot tying was not one of Mey-Rin's skills. Unfortunately, this was the only fancy dress of Faye's that was completed, and none of the dresses Faye wore working for The Grim Reaper Dispatch Society were nearly fancy enough for a ball.

"I'm sorry, Miss Faye," Mey-Rin said gloomily. "I've made an awful mess of your beautiful dress."

"It's all right, Mey-Rin," Faye said, feeling bad for the maid's depression. "I've never seen a dress like this before, and I certainly don't know how to tie up the back. I can't blame you for not knowing either."

"That's it!" Mey-Rin exclaimed. "I know someone who _will _know how! Sebastian! He knows everything. I promise I'll learn how to do this for you, but for now, I'll go get Sebastian to fix this."

"Wait!" Faye cried, but Mey-Rin had already run out the door and was on her way down the hall. Faye certainly did not want the demon's help and nor did she want him touching her dress. Though if he could actually fix it then it looked like she didn't have much of a choice. Unless she wished for the first impression of her re-introduction into high society to be that of looking like a mess.

Within a few short moments, Sebastian appeared at Faye's door. "Really," he sighed, "I should have just had you and your brother get ready together to make less work for myself. Let's have a look at this mess, shall we?"

Stepping up behind her, Sebastian pulled the knots out of the ties within mere moments. He was much slower at putting the ties together, his fingers brushing Faye's back through the dress with each movement. Faye twitched every time she felt his fingers, wondering if it was really necessary for him to touch her that much.

After finishing with the ties Sebastian pressed his hand against Faye's back and leaned close enough that his breath brushed her neck. "There. Finished."

Faye flushed and stepped away from him, moving to the mirror to check the back of the dress. It looked amazing, which irritated her just as much as it relieved her. It would have been awful to go to the ball looking like a mess, but for it to be the demon who fixed her dress was just galling.

"Thank you," she bit out as civilly as she could.

"Of course, my Lady," he responded, bowing as he spoke. "Shall we be on our way then? The young master is ready as well."

"All right then. Aunt Francis never was very tolerant of tardiness." Faye spoke calmly, but she was a bit frightened. The Marquess had always made such an intimidating figure while Faye was growing up. Faye was sure her Aunt would be take offense at Faye not alerting the Midford family to the fact that she was alive.

At the carriage Sebastian offered his hand to help Faye up, as per usual. Also as per usual, Faye disregarded his hand and used the side of the carriage to help pull herself up. Once they were in the carriage, what was becoming the siblings customary silence took over. Faye wished she could find a way to break the ice between her and Ciel. She was sure the two could be close again; she just didn't know how to go about it.

"How has the Midford family been while I was away?" Faye asked awkwardly, not wanting there to be complete silence as they drove.

"Largely the same as always, I suppose," Ciel said, staring out the window. "The Marquess Francis is as strict as ever. Marquis Alexis still likes to pretend he's as stern as his wife. You saw that Elizabeth is the same. Edward is now attending Weston College, which is really the only thing that's changed."

"I wonder if Edward will be there tonight," Faye mused, more to keep the conversation going than out of true curiosity. The last time Faye had a truly positive relationship with her cousin Edward was before Ciel and Elizabeth were engaged. Edward was exceedingly protective of his little sister and resented Ciel for becoming his darling Elizabeth's betrothed. Faye had found Edward difficult to tolerate once he became rude to Ciel.

"The young master and Miss Elizabeth were engaged at a young age," Sebastian commented. "Is the same not true of you and Edward?"

"No. I believe Aunt Francis still wanted her family to be part of the Phantomhives and the work they do for the Queen. That's why she wanted her daughter to marry into the Phantomhive household."

When they arrived at the Midford ball Faye noted that Ciel looked as nervous as she felt. She was glad she wasn't the only one who found the Midfords to be intimidating. Faye ignored Sebastian's offered hand as she stepped out of the carriage, gazing up at the familiar manor. Seeing Phantomhive Manor again had been nostalgic. Faye had wondered if seeing Midford Manor would be the same, but all she felt was nervous butterflies in her stomach. She knew this event was a necessary evil, but she truly did not want to be here. After not being a noblewoman for three years would she still fit in?

When the trio walked in they were greeted with a squealing Elizabeth. "You're here, you're here!" She cried, hugging both Ciel and Faye. "Hurry Faye, you must come see my parents before anyone steals you away." Elizabeth took off, dragging Faye behind her with Ciel and Sebastian following further back.

Soon enough they reached a stern looking couple and Elizabeth pushed Faye in front of her. "Father, Mother, may I present to you Countess Faye Phantomhive."

Francis looked Faye over with a critical eye, but Alexis lasted only a few moments before engulfing her in a hug. "It's so good to see you again," he whispered in her ear, squeezing tightly.

"I—thank you," Faye said, becoming surprisingly overcome with emotion. Uncle Alexis always had been an affectionate man. Aunt Francis on the other hand…

"Where have you been all this time?" Francis asked. "Elizabeth said you fled after Phantomhive Manor burned down and that you have been traveling."

Faye couldn't read the look on the Marquess' face. Disbelieving? Cross? Did she think Faye had acted cowardly? "I was in Wales and France mostly." Ciel, Sebastian, and Faye had talked more about Faye's story for the three years she was away. They decided on those two countries since Faye had been to both and could reasonably fake being knowledgeable about them.

"And you never once thought to contact us?" Francis asked.

"As much as your family meant to me, I had lost all that I held most dear. I couldn't bear to associate with anything that reminded me of my parents and brother or my former home. I apologize for my selfishness."

"It was selfish," Francis declared. "If you had bothered to write we could have let you know that Ciel was alive and the two of you would have been reunited much sooner."

"Mother!" Elizabeth cried. "Must you be so harsh? She's here now, that's what matters. Tonight's supposed to be about having fun."

"All right," Francis relented. "I suppose we can talk about this another time."

Faye twitched. Did her aunt really think Faye would be eager to return to Midford manor just to be berated some more?

Elizabeth sighed. "Anyway, since this is our ball shouldn't you be out on the floor greeting guests?"

"Yes, of course, and so should you." Francis grabbed Elizabeth's arm and brought her along.

"But I want to be with Ciel!" Elizabeth cried, reaching back towards Ciel as she was pulled away.

"Well, that was unpleasant," Ciel commented.

"Yes," Faye agreed, "but not entirely unexpected." Faye was sure that first greeting portended how the entire evening would go. She wished she could just leave now.

"Ugh, him again," Ciel complained, looking out onto the dance floor.

"Who?" Faye asked curiously.

"Him," Ciel said, pointing to blond man with shoulder length hair. "The Viscount Druitt. Sebastian and I helped put him in prison for leading a human trafficking ring involving pretty young girls. Unfortunately, due to his status and him bribing the judge, he was out soon after. I swear we see that man everywhere we go."

Faye felt her hands twitched as a sick churning started in her stomach. A nobleman involved in the trafficking of pretty girls was far too familiar a situation for Faye to handle. What kind of a farce was the English justice system for a man like that to be out and about after being convicted of human trafficking? Faye would have to make an effort to avoid him.

The party went largely as Faye expected. Dancing with boring, vain men. Fake smiles all around and congratulations on Faye being alive and reunited with her brother. Sympathy for being so afraid after the tragedy that occurred at Phantomhive manor. Were all these nobles really so useless in their lives that they found these balls to be fulfilling activities? It made Faye even more grateful for her service at Grim Reaper Society. If her life had taken a different turn, Faye would probably be like the rest of these people.

Faye was currently taking a break from the festivities, standing off to the side as she watched couples dance across the floor. She wondered if Elizabeth had managed to convince Ciel to dance again. He seemed very adverse to the activity.

"What beauty," Faye heard coming from her left. "That elegant blue dress against that pale perfect skin and luscious dark hair. You are Faye Phantomhive, are you not?"

Faye turned in surprise and saw to her horror that it was the Viscount Druitt talking to her. He reached for hand and Faye reared back in panic, her hand automatically reaching for a knife. She paused with her hand in her fake pocket. She could hardly take her knife out and start brandishing it around here, but nor could she let him touch her. She simply couldn't. Faye could already sense that she was on the verge of hyperventilating.

"My, my. A shy one, aren't we dear?" The Viscount took one step towards Faye before Sebastian appeared seemingly magically between them.

"There you are, my Lady. The young master has been looking for you." Sebastian gently took Faye's elbow and began steering her away. "I'm afraid I must take her from you," Sebastian called over his should at the Viscount. "The Lady is needed elsewhere."

Faye blindly let Sebastian lead her away, her hand still clutching the hilt of her knife.

Eventually they ended up on a balcony outside and Faye looked around for Ciel. "Where is Ciel?" She asked, confused.

"I'm afraid the situation forced me to lie to the dear Viscount. You looked like you could use some fresh air."

Faye let out the breath she'd been holding in a gasp, finally letting go of her knife and relaxing her body from its fight or flight stance. She leaned her hands on the balcony railing and took deep breaths of the cold night air. She hated this. Being put in situations where she was afraid. She never wanted to feel fear again, especially not because of a man. That was why she pursued her training with knives and combat skills so fiercely, so that she wouldn't have to be afraid. But certain situations still set her off.

"Are you all right?" Sebastian asked gently, laying a hand on her back.

"I'm fine," Faye declared, jerking away from his touch. Not because she was afraid like with the Viscount, but just because she detested demons. Except this demon had just saved her. Ciel must have ordered the demon to watch out for her at the ball. Why else would Sebastian have cared enough to intervene?

"They can't hurt you anymore," Sebastian said casually, leaning his back against the railing.

"They?" Faye asked.

"The cult who held you hostage. I killed them all." At the time Sebastian had just been killing them to follow Ciel's orders. Feeling the way he did now about Faye he wished he could go back and make the cultists' deaths far more painful and frightening.

"I know. Ciel told me, remember? But that doesn't make the world safe. There are plenty of others out there who will commit similar atrocities. Such as the Viscount Druitt."

"Would you like me to kill him?"

Faye looked over at Sebastian in surprise. His offer seemed genuine; then again the death of a human probably meant nothing to a demon. Faye looked out into the night sky. Part of her was tempted to say yes. A man like that surely deserved to die, but Faye couldn't bring herself to kill someone in cold blood. In the midst of battle or if someone was in immediate danger, yes. But she didn't want the choice of whether someone should live or die to rest on her shoulders.

"No," she said quietly. "Not unless you need to kill him while saving someone else." She looked over at Sebastian. "If the Viscount continues his previous activities, we just need to make sure one of the judge's relatives is among those taken. I doubt he would be so open to bribery then."

Sebastian gave a slow smile and bowed. "Yes, my Lady."

Faye shook her head at the demon's behavior and looked out over the grounds. "The ball should be nearly finished now. Would you find Ciel and see if he is ready to leave?"

"Of course, my Lady."

Ciel had said the Viscount was appearing everywhere they went. Faye sincerely hoped he was exaggerating and that she would not be seeing the Viscount anytime soon.

Ciel and Sebastian soon appeared, with Ciel slightly out of breath and looking concerned. "Faye, I'm so sorry. I didn't think about how you would feel about being in the same vicinity as someone like the Viscount Druitt."

Faye looked over at Sebastian in surprise. She hadn't expected him to tell Ciel what had happened.

"I promise you, Faye, you will not be taken again." Ciel turned to his butler and said, "Sebastian, this is an order. You are to protect Faye to the exclusion of all else except myself." Ciel turned back to Faye and mumbled, "I'd put you as first priority, but because of the contract I have to come first."

Faye smiled, touched by her brother's caring. She took a few hesitant steps forward before wrapping her arms around Ciel. "Thank you, Ciel."

Ciel's arms slowly came up before clutching the back of Faye's dress. Faye held Ciel tighter, tears starting to fall. They stood that way a long time before Ciel gently pulled back.

Faye wiped her eyes, feeling relieved. It felt like she and Ciel had a breakthrough, and she hoped that things would be easier now. In line with that thought, Faye wanted to have an open and honest relationship with Ciel. She didn't want to hide anything from her brother.

"Ciel, while I greatly appreciate your care and concern for me, I despise your butler. Truly, I do. I want as little to do with the demon as possible and certainly don't want him watching out for me."

Ciel looked at Faye seriously for a moment before saying, "Well, it's too late now. I gave the order and I can't take it back. That's how it works." Ciel turned and started walking away. "Let's return home now, shall we?"

Faye stared after Ciel, stunned and suspicious. Was that actually true? Once an order was given to a demon it couldn't be undone? Faye really needed to know more about demons now that she was living in the same house as one. It looked like it was time for her to pay a visit to William to learn more.


	9. William's Confession

A/N: Yeah, the build-up with Faye and Sebastian is slow, but since I update so often is it really that slow? I know, I know, the plot build up before the fun stuff happens can be vexing. If only I wasn't so set on trying to have their relationship make sense.

Also, someone commented that Faye is racist against demons in the comments. I'd just like to point out that demons are in fact evil creatures and Sebastian is planning on eating Faye's little brother's soul, thereby erasing his entire existence. Faye would have to be pretty shallow to be jumping all over Sebastian in a situation like this.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

**Grim Reaper Dispatch Society Headquarters **

Faye lifted her skirts as she walked up the steps to the Grim Reaper Society's headquarters. It felt odd to return here now that she no longer worked for them. This place had been her whole life for three years, but now she would be entering it as a mere guest.

Knowing her way around, she immediately made a beeline for William's office.

"Excuse me!" A voice called. Faye turned to see a lady at the front desk looking at her. Faye didn't recognize her, but Faye had very little to do with the secretaries since she always received her assignments from grim reapers who worked in management. "Can I help you?"

"I need to speak with William Spears. I was just headed to his office."

"Do you have an appointment?" The secretary asked politely.

"No," Faye responded, irritated. She met with William all the time without making appointments. She doubted he would mind her dropping by to ask about demons.

"Then I'm afraid I can't let you go any further."

"Oh really? And how exactly do you plan to stop me?"

She looked surprised for a minute. "I'll call security if you won't leave willingly."

This was ridiculous. Faye had served the Reaper Society faithfully for three years and now she wasn't even allowed inside without an appointment? What did this uppity secretary know? "Could you contact William for me and let him know that Faye Phantomhive wishes to speak with him?" Faye asked as politely as she could.

"No. Mr. Spears is far too busy for me to contact him, and I'm sure he's far too busy to speak with you."

Faye slowly walked over to the front desk, her boots clacking against the tiled floor with every step. "And what gives you the authority to decide who William will see? Aren't you just a secretary?"

The secretary looked nervous as her hand slowly reached for the phone, no doubt to call security. Faye was debating what she should do when she heard the excited cry of, "Faye!" Faye turned to see Ronald walking towards her. "What are you doing here? William said that you left us."

"Yes, I had believed my whole family to be dead, but recently found out my little brother was still alive. I decided to leave the Reaper Society so I could spend more time with him."

"That's great news, Faye. I'm very happy for you," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. Then his started pouting. "But you could have said goodbye before you left."

"You're right, of course. I am sorry for that. I'm afraid I was in a bit of a rush to be reunited with my brother."

"Tch. Honestly. We could have had a big going away party for you. I bet with all the work you've done for us William would have let us put the bill on the Society's tab."

"Um, excuse me, Mr. Knox," the secretary interrupted. "Do you know this woman?"

"Of course. Faye's worked as an associate to the grim reapers for a few years. Is there a problem here?"

"I need to speak to William," Faye informed Ronald. "Would you mind escorting me to his office since apparently I'm not allowed to go there on my own any more?"

"Sure, no problem!" Ronald wrapped his arm around Faye's shoulder as he steered her away from the front desk. "Why do you need to see William?"

"I have a bit of a demon problem that I'd like William's advice on," Faye said dryly.

Ronald gave a low whistle. "A demon problem, eh? That's a tough one. How'd you get mixed up in that?"

"_I _didn't," Faye said with a sigh. "My brother did, which now makes it my problem as well. There's not much I can do about the situation, but I can at least learn more about demons. Knowledge is power and all that."

"Ha! That's what William thinks anyway. Speaking of William, here we are." Ronald removed his arm from Faye and gestured grandly at the door. "The office of William T. Spears. Good luck, Faye."

"Thanks, Ronald. Good luck to you as well." Faye waved to Ronald as he walked away before turning and knocking on the door.

"Come in," William called.

Faye entered and when William looked up his eyes widened in surprise, then they looked panicked. Panicked? Was William upset that she was here now that she was no longer an employee? "Is something wrong, William?" Faye asked hesitantly.

William's normally stoic look quickly returned. "I don't know. Is there something wrong, Faye?"

"Well, you know that I'm now living with a demon. I realized last night that I don't know very much about demons or their contracts with humans. I felt it would be beneficial to learn more given my present situation. I was hoping you'd be willing to tell me more or to direct me to some helpful reading material."

"Oh, is that all? I mean, that's an excellent idea. You should definitely be more informed about the nature of demons given your present situation."

"Right," Faye said, confused by William's behavior. "So will you help me?"

"Of course," William said, leaning back against his chair. "You have given The Grim Reaper Dispatch Society a great deal of help during these past three years, and you've become a friend. I would be pleased to help you."

William stood up and assumed the posture he tended to use whenever he was lecturing. Faye had seen this pose many times when William was teaching her about Grim Reapers.

"Demons are parasitic creatures that live by consuming human souls. In order to consume a soul they must first form a contract with a human. They help the human accomplish a goal, and then their reward is to eat that human's soul. Once a contract is formed, the demon must obey their master's orders and stick to the terms of the contract. If they break the contract they are unable to attain their master's soul. This is why demons will go to extreme lengths to protect their masters and their goals."

"Can a master change an order once given?" Faye asked.

"Of course. A demon has to follow any order. If the master wishes to change an order, that is their prerogative.

"The contract also comes with a seal, or a mark, that is placed both on the demon and on the human. The more visible the mark, the stronger the bond between demon and master is. The contract mark is what gives the human power over the demon, but the mark also makes it impossible for the human to escape their demon. The seal allows a demon to track their master wherever they may be." Faye thought of Ciel's contract mark on his eye. She hadn't seen it, but he had explained to her that it was there. That was a pretty visible place. She wondered where Sebastian's mark was.

"And what are demons capable of?" Faye asked. "All I know about them is that they're dangerous, near impossible to hurt, and that they make deals with humans so they can eat their souls."

"A demon's physical capabilities are much like that of a grim reaper. They have great strength and speed. They're able to heal from nearly any injury, though a death scythe can kill them. Their senses are enhanced. A demon's sight, smell, and hearing are all far above those of humans. They are masters of manipulation and are able to create manifestations."

"Like a building," Faye murmured, thinking of Phantomhive manor being recreated exactly as it had been before.

"Yes," William agreed. "Those are a demon's main abilities. Do you have any other questions for me?"

"Not right now. Unless you know of some secret way to break a contract between a demon and a human."

"The only ways are if either the demon or the human dies."

"Pity I don't have a way to kill the demon. Though I suppose Ciel would hate me if I did kill his demon butler. He doesn't care about his soul; only his revenge."

They sat in silence for a moment, both lost in their thoughts. William surprised Faye when he asked, "Has Sebastian acted oddly at all?"

"Oddly? What do you mean?" Since Faye was hardly familiar with demons she couldn't say what was odd and what wasn't. She had only seen the demon act as a superb butler, which seemed to be a part of fulfilling his contract.

"I mean, has he acted oddly towards you?"

"Towards me? Are you worried he carries a grudge for the time I bound him and threw knives at him? He doesn't seem to care in the least about that. It's not as though I actually hurt him. He treats me as one would expect a butler to treat the Lady of a household."

"Mm. Yes, that and nothing more?"

"Why are you asking me these questions, William?" Faye asked, beginning to feel a little alarmed. "Do you know something I don't about this particular demon?"

"Ah, well if nothing has happened perhaps it is of no matter."

"Perhaps _what _is of no matter? I am living with this demon, William. If you know of information that may help me, I would appreciate being informed of it."

William looked more uncomfortable than Faye had ever seen him as he sat down. "I suppose full disclosure in this situation may be warranted in case something does come of it." He paused, seeming to gather his thoughts. "As I told you before, you were one of my best employees. You helped us in a great manner of different ways and I had assumed that you would continue to do so."

Faye narrowed her eyes, wondering what her employment at The Grim Reaper Dispatch Society had to do with her brother's demon butler.

"As you are aware, Grell Sutcliff's angering of your brother was becoming a problem for us. Ciel ordered Sebastian to kill Grell and it was disrupting work. I was afraid of how large the disruption would grow, so I took steps to help mitigate the problem."

"And these steps were?" Faye prompted when it seemed as though William wouldn't continue.

"We needed to have some sort of check on Sebastian, a way to control him. There is a spell that is a one-way bind between two individuals. The one who the spell is performed on becomes infatuated with the focus of the spell, and they desire that person's happiness."

"All right," Faye prompted again, her brain stuttering as it fought against making a connection between William's words and herself.

"We performed the spell on Sebastian, and the focus of the spell was you. I never intended for you to have much interaction with him," William hurried to say. "It was only supposed to be enough for you to convince Sebastian to stop in his pursuit of killing Grell. I never could have foreseen that Sebastian's master was your brother. You never gave us your last name."

Faye stood up so abruptly she knocked her chair down. "That's ridiculous," she declared. "A demon could never hold such feelings for a human. Desiring one and working towards their happiness, that's impossible." Faye's mind flashed to when Sebastian had saved her from the Viscount Druitt. She had assumed Ciel had ordered Sebastian to watch over her, but then Ciel had ordered Sebastian to protect her _after _that had happened. Faye pushed that thought out of her mind.

"You may have performed that infatuation spell," Faye declared, "but I'm sure it would not work on a demon. Besides, as I said, Sebastian treats me no differently than anyone would expect a butler to treat the Lady of his house. If you'll excuse me, I must be going." She turned on her heel and stormed out the door, not stopping her quick pace until she was far away from the grim reaper headquarters.

William watched her leave in concern. He had been afraid of Faye's anger, but he hadn't expected denial. He hoped she would be okay. Perhaps he should monitor the situation. He didn't really have the time, but this was his fault, more or less. He at least needed to convince Faye that the spell was real and that it would have affected the demon. Though, maybe Sebastian himself would take care of convincing Faye that the spell had worked. Either intentionally or unintentionally.


	10. The Ferro Family

A/N: I hope I didn't butcher the little bit of Italian I have in this chapter.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

**Phantomhive Manor **

Faye still felt frazzled as she stepped into the manor. She still didn't believe William. She believed that he had cast the spell on Sebastian (and she was _not _happy he had cast a spell involving her without saying a word to her), but she refused to believe a demon was truly capable of caring for a human beyond wanting to consume their soul.

"Faye!" Ciel called, making her jump.

"Yes, Ciel?" Faye asked as Ciel and Sebastian came down the stairs.

"We have a letter from the Queen. The Ferro family is an Italian mafia group that deal in drugs. We've dealt with them before, but her Majesty feels they've gotten out of control again. She wants us to remind them who is in charge here in England. Would you like to come with us?"

"Yes, of course. Are we leaving now?" Faye hoped Ciel couldn't see how upset she was. She'd have to pull herself together quickly.

"I'd like to, yes. Do you need time to get ready?"

"No, now is fine." Ciel swept past her and out the front door, but Sebastian grabbed Faye's arm before she could follow.

He took a deep inhale before tilting his head to the side. "You smell of reapers. Now, why would that be?"

"Perhaps because I was at The Grim Reaper Dispatch Society earlier today," Faye said, trying to extract her arm from Sebastian's grip. "I worked there for three years and have many ties with the grim reapers. Is that a problem?"

Sebastian frowned before loosening his grip. "There have been times when the reapers' goals and your brothers' goals have conflicted. So long as you choose the right side if such a situation arises again, there should be no problem."

See, wasn't that proof right there? If the demon had feelings for Faye surely he wouldn't get upset at her visiting her old companions. Unless he was upset because demons and reapers are enemies and that was why he didn't want her around them. Faye resisted the urge to shake her head to dislodge those thoughts. This was ridiculous. Now that William had told her about the spell she was beginning to see things that weren't there.

When Faye got to the carriage Ciel was impatiently waiting inside.

"What took you two so long? I thought you were right behind me."

"It's my fault, young master," Sebastian confessed as the carriage began to move. "I was inquiring where the young lady has been this morning. She missed her morning political lesson, after all."

"I had some personal business to take care of," Faye said, glaring at Sebastian. Was he trying to get her into trouble with Ciel?

"What personal business?" Ciel asked with a frown.

"I went to visit William at the Reaper Society, that's all. In the years we worked together he's become a dear acquaintance."

Sebastian's eye twitched before he asked, "My you wouldn't be overly attached to Mr. Spears, would you Lady Faye? It'd be terribly inappropriate for you to fall for a grim reaper."

Faye bit her tongue to stop her retort. She didn't know why the demon wanted to bait her, but she wouldn't fall for it. Instead she turned to Ciel and asked, "What exactly is it that we're doing right now?"

"The eldest son of the current head of the Ferro family is in London right now," Ciel explained. "He has agreed to meet with us under the guise of forming a mutually beneficial relationship."

"As in he gives the Phantomhives information on the criminal underground and we let some of the Ferro family's activities slide? I thought we were going to warn them off."

"We are. The Ferro family decreasing the drug trade in London is good for us, and them not getting on our bad side is good for them. See? A mutually beneficial relationship."

"I see," Faye said with a smile, wondering how the three of them were going to warn off a mafia family. She was sure Ciel had a plan; he never would have set the meeting up otherwise. Since he appeared less than forthcoming with what that plan was, she would just have to wait until the meeting to find out.

When they arrived at the mansion there was a row of men on either side of the stairs leading to the front door, all of whom were probably armed. Faye wondered why so many. Either Ferro liked ostentatious shows of his power, or he was afraid of Ciel. Faye should have asked what Ciel's dealings with the Ferro family in the past had been like.

The trio were led upstairs to an elaborate drawing room where a handsome man with plenty of bodyguards sat in a plush armchair. The man's eyes widened when he saw Faye. "Earl Phantomhive, why have you brought such una signora bella to a meeting like this for?" He grabbed Faye's hand and lightly kissed it, his eyes never leaving hers. Did woman really fall for things like this? Faye wondered if she should act impressed or if her default stoic look that she had adopted from spending so much time with William sufficed well enough.

"This is my sister, Faye Phantomhive," Ciel explained. "She has been gone for three years, but now that she's back it's time for her to be involved in the Phantomhive's family matters."

"Women shouldn't be brought to meetings such as this," Ferro said disapprovingly. "It would be such a shame if she were to get hurt." Was that a threat to her or to Ciel? Faye couldn't tell, but she was sure that a subtle threat had been intended.

"Let's just get down to why we're here, shall we?" Ciel asked coldly.

"You're so quick to get down to business, Earl Phantomhive," Ferro complained. "This is our first meeting." Ferro's friendly tone became harsher. "All I know of you is that you killed Azzuro Vanel along with over two dozen of my men."

"Vanel overstepped his bounds, something you'd be wise to not do."

"Oh really?" Ferro asked coldly. "And where exactly do these boundaries of yours lie?"

"Three cities," Ciel stated. "Currently your drug trafficking operates out of London, Liverpool, Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield, and Bradford, with a current attempt to establish yourself in Bristol." Ferro's eyes widened at Ciel's knowledge. "You will shut down your operations in London, Liverpool, and Manchester, and cease your efforts in Bristol."

"And if I don't?" Ferro asked tightly, giving a strained, but feral smile.

"Then I'll have Scotland Yard investigate and break up _all _your operations," Ciel explained calmly.

"You expect me to believe you know where I'm operating from in all those cities?" Ferro asked incredulously.

"Would you like me to list all the address for you?" Ciel asked with a dark smile.

Faye tensed, sure a fight would break out soon. She doubted Ferro was going to back down. Being told off by an agent of the Queen would be bad enough, being told off by one less than half your age probably seemed ridiculous.

"I'm afraid, Earl Phantomhive, that an agreement between the two of us is impossible. I don't know how you beat so many of my men before, but you were foolish to come here with only three of you, and it's such a pity that one of them is your sister." He turned to look at the men surrounding his chair. "Ready?"

Ferro's bodyguards began reaching into their jacket pockets. Reacting much faster than them, Faye reached up her sleeves for the knives on her forearms and threw them at the right arms of the two men closest to Ciel and her. Faye wrapped her arm around Ciel and brought him with her as she tumbled over the back of the couch. The demon butler could undoubtedly handle the rest of the men.

The siblings made for the door, but when they reached the hall encountered more men. Faye shoved Ciel behind her and grabbed two of her thigh knives, chucking them at the men's gun hands.

"How many knives are you carrying?" Ciel demanded as the men yelled in pain. Before Faye could answer, Sebastian appeared. He picked Ciel up and jumped out the nearest window. Faye grabbed two more knives, nearly ripping her dress as she pulled them out angrily. She wanted Ciel safe and was happy that Sebastian had got him out of here, but she didn't appreciate being abandoned.

Faye vaulted down the stairs, thinking that if all the men lining the front door were still there she would need to find a back door. Faye heard a gun go off and dropped flat on the stairs. A man at the top of the stairs took aim at her again. He was too far away for Faye to hit with one of her knives. She prepared to dodge again, but the man fell over with a kitchen knife stabbed into the back of his neck before he could take another shot. Standing behind him was Sebastian with an elegant smile.

"Things appear to be getting rather rough in here, my Lady. Shall I escort you out?" Sebastian was next to Faye and scooping her up in his arms before she could blink. Another shot went off and Sebastian quickly turned, the bullet hitting his shoulder rather than Faye's.

Faye winced, though she knew the bullet couldn't really hurt Sebastian. That knowledge didn't change the fact that she didn't enjoy seeing people get hurt.

The men who had been lining the front stairs began piling in through the front door and Sebastian turned to run back up the stairs. "I'm terribly sorry, my Lady," Sebastian said as he put Faye back on her feet, "but I'm afraid there are a few small problems I must take care of before we can leave." He softly ran his hand down her hair before jumping down the stairs.

Faye felt her face turn red. What had that been? There was no reason for him to touch her hair, and the touch had felt…affectionate. As had the smile that went along with the touch. Faye fumed as she heard sounds of battle going on downstairs. When the sounds died down Faye walked to the top of the stairs and looked down to see the floor covered in still bodies.

"Shall we take our leave then?" Sebastian called up the stairs.

Faye carefully walked down to Sebastian, making sure to avoid stepping on any bodies or in any pools of blood. When Faye came even with Sebastian she stood up as tall as she could and looked him in the eye.

"I know about the spell," she declared. "The one that William cast on you in the hopes that it would allow the Reaper Society to control you, but I don't believe in it."

"You don't believe in it?" Sebastian asked, confused.

"I don't believe that the spell worked," Faye clarified. "I don't think demons are capable of tender emotions and of caring for a being other than themselves. There's no need for you to act as though the spell did anything in order to fool the Reaper Society since I no longer work for them, and I certainly wasn't planning on attempting to use the spell against you since I wasn't aware of its existence until this morning." Faye paused awkwardly before stating, "I just wanted to make that clear."

Sebastian watched Faye march out of the mansion with a bemused expression on his face. He had wondered what Faye's reaction would be if she learned of the spell, but he had not imagined it to be denial. Did she truly believe the spell hadn't worked, or did she simply wish to believe that?

On the drive home Sebastian began to be irritated, and his irritation continued to grow as his thought chased themselves around in circles. Originally, he would have been thrilled for this to be Faye's reaction. With her uninterested in using the attraction spell to control his behavior, he wouldn't have a problem. But now he was just offended. How dare she refuse to acknowledge his feelings?

Admittedly, he hadn't done much to express his feelings, but he was still figuring out what those feelings were and what he should do about them. He was enjoying the unfamiliarity of it all, but he knew he would have to be subtle about his feelings. Faye had a more than obvious distaste for demons, but he was sure he could charm his way around that. It wasn't as though he was a stranger to seducing human women, after all. He would make Faye acknowledged his feelings.


	11. The Phantomhive Servants

A/N: I was going to post this on Monday, but I'm not 100% sure I'll be able to get to my computer, so I figured I'd do it Sunday night instead.

Also, the lullaby I have in this chapter is a real version of the song, just not the one most commonly used today.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye

**Phantomhive Manor **

Faye stood in front of her bedroom mirror as she absently worked on her hair. To the outside observer, it merely looked as though she was braiding and pinning her hair up. What she was really doing was using the mirror to watch Mey-Rin make the bed behind her.

Faye often left the room before Mey-Rin was finished, but it always looked to her like Mey-Rin was more making a mess of things than actually making the bed. The odd thing was, whenever Faye came back to her room later in the day the bed looked perfect. Either Mey-Rin had a very strange technique for making beds or someone was coming along after her and fixing it.

And it wasn't just the bed making that was odd. Faye was starting to notice strange little things about Mey-Rin, Baldroy, and Finnian. Like the dinner party with the Midfords the other night.

"_It's great that you're home," Edward said, giving Faye an awkward hug. All the while he glared at Ciel, who had Elizabeth glued to his side. "I'm sorry I was unable to make it to my family's ball in your honor. I was so excited to hear that you had returned, but was unable to get away from school."_

"_That's all right," Faye comforted, though before she could say more their conversation was abruptly interrupted by Sebastian walking right between the two, forcing them both step backwards. _

"_I'm terribly sorry," Sebastian said sincerely, placing his hand over his heart. "I must check on dinner and didn't realize the two of you were here." _

_Faye stared after Sebastian in surprise, thinking he couldn't have possibly _not _noticed the two of them standing there. Was something wrong? _

"_Excuse me," Faye said to Edward before following Sebastian. Once she reached the hall that led to the kitchen she heard a large WHOOSH sound and then yelling._

"_How many times do I have to tell you that a flame thrower is no way to cook meat? I had this all set-up perfectly and you insist on ruining it!"_

"_I just wanted to get it done faster! I know it's important for the Master to make a good impression on his fiancé's family." _

_Faye was highly concerned over the comment about a flame thrower in the kitchen, but she was also confused by Sebastian's comment that he had everything set-up. Baldroy was the cook, so why would Sebastian be preparing the food for dinner?_

"_Is everything all right?" Faye called as she reached the door._

"_Fine," Sebastian said, immediately appearing in front of Faye and blocking her view of the kitchen. "Everything is absolutely fine, my Lady. Dinner will be on time and everything will be to your and the young master's specifications." Sebastian smiled and reached out to lightly tilt Faye's chin up. "Now, my Lady, why don't you go back out and act as hostess for our guests?"_

_Faye blushed and pushed his hand away before turning and going back to the sitting room. _

After all the yelling and commotion Faye had heard coming from the kitchen she was sure the dinner would turn out to be an absolute mess, but everything had gone off perfectly. The dinner was superb and ready on time just as Sebastian had promised it would be.

Then there was that incident in the garden a week later.

"_Oh no!" Faye heard Finnian yelling from outside as she walked past the front doors. "I put the weed killer on the flowers again!"_

_Faye froze. The garden had been precious to Faye's mother and so Faye was very protective of it. The statement, 'I put weed killer on the flowers,' was concerning enough, but the 'again' added at the end really upset Faye. How did one accidently put weed killer on flowers multiple times?_

_Faye rushed out the door to see Finnian bowing his head as Sebastian chastised him._

"_I just wanted to make sure I got all the weeds in the flowerbeds and that they wouldn't grow back!" Finnian explained. "I thought if I was careful enough with spraying it in between the flowers that it would be okay!" _

_Sebastian sighed. "How many times do I have to tell you that you can't spray weed killer anywhere near the flowers? It will kill the flowers just as easily as it kills the weeds. More easily, in fact, flowers are more fragile." _

"_Is everything all right?" Faye asked. "Which of the flower gardens did you use the weed killer on?" Faye asked. If Finnian had only done the garden at the front of the house it would be sad, but the Phantomhive manor had plenty of other gardens._

"_All of them," Finnian admitted morosely, staring at the ground. _

"_All of them?" Faye questioned breathlessly, imaging the beautiful Phantomhive grounds barren of all flowers. _

"_No need to worry, my Lady," Sebastian said turning around with a brilliant smile. He stepped closer and took Faye's hands in his. "I promise you that not one flower will perish."_

Faye had been highly doubtful of Sebastian's claim, but the gardens had stayed as healthy as ever. To prove that everything was fine, a few days later Sebastian had presented Faye with a bouquet utilizing flowers from each of the different gardens on the Phantomhive estate. A bouquet that was currently sitting in a vase on the dresser beneath Faye's mirror. As loathe as she was to keep something given to her by a demon, the bouquet was simply too pretty for her to throw away. Who knew demons could be so skillful at flower arranging?

As Mey-Rin stepped away from the bed and eyed the messy corners and the sheet poking out from the comforter at irregular intervals, Faye nodded to herself. Baldroy, Finnian, and Mey-Rin all appeared to be incompetent at their jobs. The house was in good working order because Sebastian came along behind them and fixed all their mishaps. Which begged the question, why were they hired in the first place? Was it just for show? Technically, Sebastian could apparently do every job needed by himself, but the Phantomhives could hardly keep up proper appearances if they only had one servant.

Mind you, Faye was fond enough of the three of them. They were fun to be around and they all seemed to love Ciel, but she was still confused as to why they were hired. Maybe she could ask Ciel about it at breakfast.

Before they could make it to breakfast Faye heard several gun shots outside. Wondering what it could possibly be, she ran outside. The house was surrounded by men in suits wielding guns. Men sent by enemies of the Phantomhive family, no doubt.

Three of them pointed their guns at Faye and she froze. She was ashamed to admit that the first thought to run through her head was whether Sebastian could get to her in time to save her.

"Get down milady!" Shouted a voice from behind Faye. Faye whirled to find Mey-Rin standing behind her. Mey-Rin's glasses were perched on top of her head and she was holding a shot gun. Faye dropped to the ground and Mey-Rin shot the gun hand of all three men in quick succession.

Faye watched in amazement as Mey-Rin reloaded and took aim again. "You should get back in the house, my Lady."

To the side of the house came what was becoming a familiar WHOOSH sound and Baldroy came running around the corner, setting fire to the men while dodging bullets. Soon after a large BOOM sounded as a boulder landed nearly on top of two of the attackers. Faye twisted her head to see Finnian on the roof throwing boulders like they were nothing. That was _not_ normal.

Faye turned back around to watch Baldroy and Mey-Rin. She was pretty sure she had just figured out why these three had been hired. Their other jobs were just for show; _this _was why Ciel wanted them.

"Really, my Lady," came Sebastian's voice from behind Faye before he scooped her up in his arms, "what are you doing out here? I'm sure you'd like to help in a situation like this, but haven't you ever heard that you should never bring a knife to a gun fight?"

Sebastian carried Faye back into the house, acting as though what was going on outside was perfectly normal.

"Those three can handle this small problem just fine. You should be inside having your breakfast."

By this point Sebastian was walking up the stairs, Faye still in his arms. "You can put me down now," Faye said, hating the red that was creeping up her cheeks.

"On the contrary," Sebastian argued, tightening his hold on Faye. "Your brother's orders were that I was to protect you. With an attack going on outside what place could be safer than in my arms?"

"Didn't you just say that the problem was being handled?"

"Is that any reason to take chances? Something could always go wrong."

Faye considered trying to squirm her way out of Sebastian's arms, but decided that would look too undignified. Sebastian finally put her down outside of Ciel's study before opening the door for her.

Faye swept past Sebastian without looking at him. She hoped Ciel wouldn't notice that her face was red.

"Does this happen often?" She asked Ciel as she sat down at the small study table across from Ciel.

"You mean the attack outside? It happens occasionally. Don't worry, usually there's not much damage done to the house and grounds. Sebastian will be able to fix whatever is broken during the fight."

"And our servants?" Faye asked cautiously, thinking it strange that Ciel didn't mention them.

Sebastian cleared his throat meaningfully as he wheeled the breakfast tray over and Ciel looked up at him expectantly. Faye resisted the urge to sigh in frustration. The nobility and their ridiculous customs. Was it really necessary for their conversation to be interrupted just so Sebastian could announce what breakfast was? Did the demon derive that much pleasure out of his role as butler?

"This morning we have poached eggs with toast as well as ham served with Darjeeling tea."

Faye gave Sebastian a blank stare as her served her tea, letting him know that she wasn't pleased with his interruption. Sebastian gave her a sincere smile in return and Faye turned away before she could start blushing. Sebastian had been doing a lot of that ever since that night they confronted the Ferro family. He would frequently smile at her, and she rarely saw him smiling at anyone else unless he was putting on a show for someone like Elizabeth.

It irritated her that she didn't know _why _he was smiling at her. Was he putting on a show for her too? Or was he mocking her because she confronted him over the spell cast by the reapers not working?

"What about our servants?" Ciel asked, jolting Faye out of her thoughts.

Faye cleared her throat, embarrassed she had been thinking about Sebastian when she should have been talking to her brother. "Aren't you worried for their safety at all?"

"They can handle themselves," Ciel said dismissively. "Mey-Rin was previously employed as an expert sniper, Baldroy is the only man from his platoon to survive a perilous battle, and Finnian was an involuntary participant in an experiment that gave him superhuman strength."

Faye stared at her brother in stunned amazement. "How did you manage to find them all?" Faye asked.

"With Sebastian's help, of course."

Faye turned to Sebastian who smiled and said, "If I couldn't do that much, what kind of a butler would I be?"

Faye slowly talked to the kitchen a few hours later, her mind still caught up on the amazing things she had seen that morning. Baldroy, Finnian, and Mey-Rin ended up being what Faye and Ciel talked about all through breakfast. Ciel had told Faye his reason for hiring those three was to protect the house, but Faye was grateful for servants that could protect themselves. The only Phantomhive servant from her parents' day that was still around was Tanaka. Perhaps the others had simply terminated their employment, but it was far more likely that they had all died by the fire or been killed by those who kidnapped Ciel and Faye.

Faye heard Baldroy, Mey-Rin, and Finnian chatting together as she entered the kitchen. They were eating the cake leftover from Ciel's morning snack. Faye thought it was adorable that Ciel was still as fond of sweets as he had been when they were younger.

All three stopped talking as Faye walked in. Mey-Rin and Baldroy both jumped to their feet.

"Is there something you need, my Lady?" Mey-Rin asked at the same time as Baldroy said, "Do you need me to make you a snack?"

"Uh, no. I just wanted to thank all of you for protecting Phantomhive manor today," Faye said, clasping her hands in front of her. "And especially you, Mey-Rin, for saving my life earlier. The three of you were quite a sight out there this morning."

"Ah, it was nothing," Mey-Rin said with a dismissive wave of her hand, though she was blushing furiously at the compliment.

"Yeah," Bard agreed, puffing out his chest. "We were just doing our job, that's all."

As Faye looked at the three of them she wondered if she had acted like the other nobles she claimed to despise who always did things like overlook the help. There was Baldroy, who though he appeared incapable of cooking a proper meal, was always eager to get in the kitchen. Faye wondered what it would be like to fight in a war where you lost all your comrades. There was Mey-Rin, who was a terrible maid, but always did her chores eagerly. Faye couldn't imagine this sweet woman as a sniper and wondered what had led Mey-Rin to that vocation. And then there was Finnian who looked so young and was always cheerful. His past sounded as though it might be a little similar in some respects to Faye's and Ciel's. They all had such sorrowful things in their pasts, but they served the Phantomhives with smiles and gusto, however misplaced that gusto might be.

These three individuals seemed like people truly worth knowing. Plus…"Really I need to thank you for more than just today. The three of you always give such wonderful service to the Phantomhive family every day." All of them beamed proudly. That last statement was a blatant lie, but what they did seem to do every day was make endless extra work for Sebastian, which was perfectly fine by Faye.

"Would you mind terribly if I joined you?" Faye asked shyly. She was more than aware that a Countess dining with the servants bordered on scandalous, but she missed her days with the Reaper Society where everyone was treated as equals. She understood her place in society, but sometimes at home she didn't want to pretend that being of noble blood made her better than the rest of the world.

The three servants gave each other surprised and uncertain looks before Finnian scooted out the chair next to him. "You can sit be me," he said a little hesitantly.

"Thank you, Finnian," Faye said, hoping she hadn't made them too uncomfortable. She truly did want to get to know them better.

"You can just call me Finny," he said with a bright smile. "Most people do."

"Oye, an' you can just call me Bard," Baldroy threw in, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "Not like it's a big deal or anything."

"Thank you," Faye said sincerely.

Faye had gone to bed that night happier than she had been in a very long time. Ciel and she were becoming close again. Faye was making friends with all the servants (barring Sebastian, of course). And Faye was able to help make London safer by using the skills she'd learned from the reapers in her duties as the Queen's watch dog.

However, a few hours later as Faye listened to the non-stop barking from the _monstrosity _outside, she was no longer feeling very happy. Pluto wanted to be inside and would not stop his whining to be let in. Faye had tried blocking out the noise with her pillow, but it barely muffled the sound.

Losing her composure, Faye threw her pillow on the floor and stalked to the window. She threw it open and yelled, "Would you shut-up, you stupid mongrel?" Pluto stopped his howling for a moment to look at Faye before resuming his barking.

Faye sat on the windowsill and put her head in hands. She was _so _tired. What could she do to get Pluto to stop?

While thinking, Faye remembered something she used to do to help Ciel fall asleep. Ciel and Pluto weren't similar in any way, of course, but it might be worth it to try the same method.

"Hey!" Faye yelled to get the beast's attention before she began singing:

"Rock-a-bye, baby, thy cradle is green;

Father's a nobleman, mother's a queen;

And Betty's a lady, and wears a gold ring;

And Johnny's a drummer, and drums for the king."

Faye was surprised when Pluto actually quieted down and looked at up her expectantly. She sang the lullaby a few more times and Pluto slowly sank down and started sleeping.

Faye sighed in relief and slipped back inside her room, but before she could shut her window a quiet voice called up, "Most impressive, my Lady. Rather like the voice of an angel calming the savage beast." Faye peeked over the window to see Sebastian on the ground outside her window. Was he mocking her? Faye didn't dare yell anything back at him, too afraid she would wake-up Pluto. Instead she settled for glaring down at Sebastian.

"Now my Lady, there's no need for that," Sebastian chastised. "You could say that Pluto's not the only savage beast you've managed to catch the attention of." He paused while Faye tried to work out the meaning of that. Speaking even more quietly Sebastian admitted, "The spell cast by William did work, Faye. You're in my thoughts far more than anything or anyone else. That won't change no matter how much you may wish to deny it."

Faye quickly shut her window before Sebastian could say more. She didn't want to hear this. When she told William she didn't believe the spell had worked, she meant it. Demons were powerful beings not known for their affection of others, but there had been plenty of signs in the last few weeks that Sebastian regarded Faye differently than he did others. Faye had hoped that Sebastian had just been mocking her and pretending that the spell had worked, but she no longer believed he was only pretending. Which left the question, what should she do now?


	12. The Queen

A/N: Despite my original plan to keep chapters around 2,000 words they seem to keep trending towards 3,000 instead…

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

**Phantomhive Manor **

"There is a letter for you, my Lady," Sebastian said as he entered the study, interrupting Ciel and Faye's conversation.

Faye took the letter, then froze in surprise.

"What is it, Faye?" Ciel asked.

"It's a letter from the Queen," Faye said slowly. This couldn't be a case for the Queen's watchdog; those were always sent to Ciel. She grabbed the letter open from Ciel's desk and slit the top of the envelope. Pulling out the letter, she frowned slightly as she read the Queen's letter.

"Well? What does she want?" Ciel asked.

"The Queen says she would like to meet with me."

"What?" Ciel ripped the letter out of Faye's hands and read over it quickly.

"Is that a problem?" Faye asked uncertainly, surprised at Ciel's behavior.

"Don't you remember that the Queen rarely speaks with anyone these days?" Ciel asked. "And she almost never goes out in public. Ever since Prince Albert died she has been in deep mourning."

"Our family does do a lot for the Queen," Faye mused. "Perhaps because of that she has more interest in the Phantomhive family? Did she meet with you after you returned?"

"Only once. And the only public appearance I've seen her make in years was for the awarding of a Royal Warrant." Ciel sat back in his chair, looking troubled.

"Well then, shall I prepare the carriage, young master?" Sebastian asked.

"Yes," Ciel replied. "Prepare some luggage as well. We may as well stay in our London house for the weekend if we have to make a trip out there."

"Of course, my Lord."

**Buckingham Palace **

The Phantomhive carriage slowed to a stop outside Buckingham Palace and Sebastian got out first. When Sebastian held his hand up to offer Faye help, he spread his arm across almost the entire doorway. Faye would have to either accept his help down, or push his arm out of the way.

Since the night Sebastian had told Faye the infatuation spell had worked he had become exceedingly attentive to Faye and her needs. As a result, Faye went to Mey-Rin, Bard, and Finny for any and all things she may need help with rather than asking Sebastian. Involving those three inevitably ended up creating more work for Sebastian. It was an interesting cycle.

Faye tried to stare Sebastian down, but he only gave her a patient smile in return.

"What's taking so long, Faye?" Ciel demanded. "Is something wrong?"

"No," Faye said with a quiet sigh of defeat as she took Sebastian's hand. "Nothing is wrong."

The three were led into the palace, but outside the Queen's drawing room the three were barred by guards.

"What is the meaning of this?" Ciel asked.

"Only the Countess Phantomhive has been invited to see the Queen personally," one of the guards explained.

"Why?" Faye asked in surprise. The Queen's letter hadn't said anything about Ciel, but Faye and Ciel had assumed that both Phantomhives would be welcome. What could the Queen possibly want to say to Faye that she couldn't say to Ciel?

"Surely you would not deny a Countess her butler," Sebastian argued. Faye wondered if this was another of Sebastian's excuses to stick close to her or if he found this situation to be odd as well. Yet, it wasn't as though the Queen could mean her harm. What ill feelings could she possibly have against Faye?

"I'm sorry," the guard said forcefully, "but you and the Earl will have to wait out here."

Faye threw a slightly panicked look at Ciel. It had been a long time since she'd been in the presence of royalty and she wasn't sure she remembered all she was supposed to do. She had been counting on following Ciel's lead.

The guards ushered Faye through the door and shut it behind her, leaving her in the drawing room with the Queen and her attendant. The Queen was sitting in an arm chair and dressed completely in black with a veil covering her face. Standing next to the Queen was a handsome man with white hair, which Faye fond odd. The attendant didn't appear particularly old.

Faye took a few more steps into the room before dropping into a curtsey. "Thank you for inviting me to come see you, Queen Victoria. It has been a long time since I have been in your presence."

"Please rise," the attendant said. Faye came out of the curtsey timidly, wondering why it was the attendant who told her to rise and not the Queen. Didn't that authority belong to the Queen and her alone?

"Countess Phantomhive, my name is Ash and I am the Queen's aide. The Queen is grateful you could come to visit her on such short notice. Please, take a seat."

Faye sat on the couch across from the Queen and clasped her hands together nervously.

"Queen Victoria expresses her condolences on your loss. Your parents performed many important services for the Queen and for England. Although, she wonders where you have been for the past three years."

Since Ash hadn't asked a question, Faye didn't immediately realize he was waiting for an answer. After sitting in silence for a while, Faye gave the response she had now rehearsed multiple times with Ciel and Sebastian. "I was traveling. I thought I had lost everything in the fire, and I was devastated. I couldn't stand to see anything that reminded me of my family and my old life, so I left. I went to Wales and then France. I was lucky enough to come across an article mentioning Ciel. I returned as soon as I learned he was alive."

"Mmm. And what did you do during your travels?"

"I did a lot of reading and sightseeing," Faye said slowly, feeling weirder and weirder about this interview. "There's a lot to learn and a lot to see in the world. Though I mostly kept to myself. I did not have much desire for the company of others after I had lost those who were most precious to me."

The Queen turned towards Ash and he leaned down so she could whisper in his ear. "Yes, we see. The Queen understands what it is like to lose those you love the most." Faye was having a hard time concentrating on Ash's words. Beyond the strangeness of the interview, something didn't _feel _right. Because of Faye's magic she was more sensitive to feeling the souls of those around her. She couldn't get any strong impressions without using her spells, but something about these two felt very off. The vibe Faye was getting from the Queen and her aide almost made her nauseous.

"Now that you are back, what are your plans?"

"My plans?" Faye asked hesitantly. "I came back to be with my brother. That is what is most important to me, though I have been helping him in his duties as the Queen's watchdog and will continue to do so. It is the Phantomhive family's obligation to work amongst the criminal underground to help make England a safer place."

"We see," Ash said with a gentle smile, though his eyes were unreadable. "Well, we thank you for coming here today and for your help to your brother as the Queen's watch dog."

Taking that as a dismissal, Faye stood up and curtsied again before leaving the room.

Ciel was sitting in a chair with a petulant look on face. Sebastian was standing behind him looking amused.

"Let's go," Faye said brusquely as she walked past them, not stopping to wait for them.

"Faye!" Ciel called out in surprise. "Slow down! What's wrong?" Ciel had to jog to catch up to Faye, though to be fair she was several inches taller than him.

"Nothing, Ciel," Faye whispered. "I just want to leave this place."

When they got into the carriage Faye stared out the window silently before asking, "When did Ash become the Queen's attendant? I don't remember seeing him before."

"I don't know," Ciel admitted. "Sometime in the past few years I guess. Why? Did something happen to upset you?"

"The Queen didn't speak at all, and she only whispered something to Ash once. The rest of the time Ash spoke for the Queen with confidence. I find it troubling for our monarch to rely so heavily on someone else. And they both felt odd."

"They _felt _odd?" Ciel questioned.

"Because of my magical abilities I can sense the character of a person's souls to some degree. For example, cousin Elizabeth feels bright and naïve while Tanaka feels calm and experienced. People have a different feel to them, and I don't like how those two felt."

"Did Ash's soul have a different feel from anyone else's you've felt before?" Sebastian questioned.

"Why would it feel different?" Faye asked, confused.

"Oh, no particular reason. I was just curious. That's an interesting ability of yours. What do I feel like to you?"

"Powerful."

"Not evil?" Sebastian asked inquisitively.

"And dangerous."

"But not evil?"

Faye looked out the window again, not wanting to respond to that. Sebastian felt different from both humans and grim reapers, but his soul didn't have a similar feeling to the evil humans she had helped the reapers capture. She couldn't imagine why a demon's soul wouldn't feel evil to her. Maybe it was because he was too powerful for her to get a good read on him.

When they arrived at their London home Ciel said, "Why don't you go on inside, Faye? I need to give Sebastian some orders regarding a case we're looking into. I'll be along shortly."

"All right, Ciel." Faye walked slowly, wondering what case Ciel was talking about and why he didn't want Faye around while he talked about it.

Faye opened the door and made straight for the sofa. After her interview with the Queen she felt exhausted. When Faye reached the sitting room she stopped short. There was a purple haired Indian man lounging on the couch.

He looked over at her in interest. "Hello. What are you doing here?"

"This is my house," Faye said, offended. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm afraid you must be confused, miss. This is the home of Ciel Phantomhive."

"Yes, and _I'm _his older sister, Faye Phantomhive."

"You're what?" He asked, standing up.

Another Indian man, this one with a turban, walked into the room carrying a tea set. "Is something wrong, my Prince?"

"This woman claims she's Ciel's sister!" He exclaimed, pointing at Faye.

"She is my sister," Ciel said calmly as we walked in. "Faye, this is Prince Soma and his butler Agni. Soma, Agni, this is my older sister Faye. She's been gone for quite some time, but she's back now."

"Why is an Indian prince living in our London townhouse?" Faye asked at the same time that Soma whined, "Why didn't you tell me you had a sister?"

"This day has been too long for me to deal with this," Ciel said, sitting down with a tired sigh. Agni promptly poured some tea and handed it to him.

"You could have warned me," Faye chastised, still very confused.

"I will go prepare lunch for you all," Agni declared. "We are delighted to have you here with us."

"Allow me to apologize for my rude behavior," Prince Soma said, coming to stand in front of Faye. "I was unaware that Ciel had a sister. Ciel is like a brother to me. This means you will be like little sister to me."

Faye raised her eyebrows in surprise. That was rather forward of the Prince to say to someone he just met, though his statement gave Faye hope. She never would have guessed Ciel to have a friend he was so close with. If Prince Soma's statement were true perhaps Ciel was doing better than Faye thought he was.

Although, something else bothered her a little; the Prince looked rather young. "How old are you?" She asked.

"I am seventeen," he declared.

"Ah. I am one year older than you then."

"Oh." He looked surprised for a moment before declaring, "Then I am your younger brother."

Despite herself, Faye laughed. She found the Prince to be rather bold and a little odd, but charming nonetheless.

Agni soon returned with plates full of curry. "Where is Sebastian?" He asked Ciel.

"On an errand for me. He will return by this evening."

During lunch Prince Soma and Agni told Faye how they had come to meet and befriend Ciel and Sebastian. They also heard the cover story of where Faye had been while not with Ciel. The two found the story of the siblings reuniting touching enough to be moved to tears. Faye found this both to be sweet and silly.

"So you take care of this townhome all by yourself?" Faye asked Agni after lunch.

"It is not so hard," he said. Faye doubted that. The Phantomhive townhome wasn't as big as their manor, but it was still large and Agni had to take on the duties of butler, cook, maid, and gardener.

"Agni's capabilities of a butler rival those of Sebastian's," Ciel admitted. "The two of them even tied in a fencing match."

If it hadn't been her own brother who told her, Faye wouldn't have believed it. How could a human possibly match a demon in a fight? Faye tried to focus on Agni's soul. She sensed purity, sereneness, and a quiet strength to the man. Amazing.

When Sebastian returned home in the evening, Faye was in the kitchen getting something to drink.

"Would you like me to do that for you, my Lady?" Sebastian asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"No. I can get myself a drink well enough," Faye said as she stood next to the counter, cup in hand.

"As that may be, one of your station need not concern yourself with such trivialities. I'm surprised Agni did not offer to get something for you."

"I'm sure he would have been more than happy to, but he is currently watching Ciel and Prince Soma while they play chess. I did not wish to disturb him." They stood in awkward silence, Sebastian watching Faye as she drank her tea.

"Is there something I may help you with?" Faye asked after a while, wondering why Sebastian hadn't left.

"I merely wish to have myself available in case you should need anything, my Lady."

Faye was getting really tired of the demon spending so much time around her. "Oh, I think if I do need help with anything I'll ask Agni. He's quite impressive, wouldn't you say? Even Ciel said Agni was a butler on par with you. It seems Agni can do practically everything you can do. Except that he's human and kind, which rather makes him better than you, don't you think?"

While Faye talked Sebastian had slowly been walking towards her. When she finished speaking his hands slammed down on the counter on either side of Faye, blocking her in. Faye flinched at the noise and pushed back against the counter in an attempt to get further away from Sebastian.

"If you think," Sebastian said lowly as he gently took Faye's cup out of her hands and placed it behind her, "that I will tolerate you complimenting other men in my presence, then I'm afraid you really don't know me very well."

Faye's hands twitched. The urge to grab her knives was growing, though she knew they wouldn't do any good against Sebastian. Faye looked up at his eyes and saw they were glowing red. Only then did she remember that baiting a demon was probably a very bad idea. With Sebastian normally acting as the loyal butler Faye sometimes forgot how dangerous he could be.

Sebastian brought his face closer to Faye's as he said, "I guess I'll just have to work harder to impress you so that you look only at me and no one else."

Faye's whole body tensed as her right hand reached for her pocket of its own accord. Sebastian glanced down at her hand. Some emotion flickered through his eyes too quick for Faye to tell what it was, but his eyes went back to normal and he stepped back.

"I apologize, my Lady. I did not mean to frighten you." Faye took advantage of the space Sebastian had given her and fled the kitchen.

Sebastian put his hand on his face and shook his head in frustration. What had he been thinking? He hadn't been thinking, which was the problem. He had let his jealousy get the best of him. Faye had purposefully been trying to bait him and he let her.

Observing Faye these past few weeks at balls, in the city, and at home had made him realize he couldn't seduce her the same way he had other women in the past. He was used to acting dominant and catching women off guard, or having them fall prey to his dark charms. He couldn't do that with Faye. Any sign of aggression or physical dominance from males seemed to remind her of her time held hostage by the occult and frightened her. At balls Faye was very careful who she danced with, and in the city Sebastian noticed her walking in a very specific pattern. She moved to avoid any men who looked like they could possibly be threatening. Or maybe she was judging by reading their souls.

Yes, seducing Faye Phantomhive was proving much more difficult than Sebastian had thought.

A/N: Next chapter Faye and Sebastian get sent to the city by themselves! Good quality time for the two of them.


	13. Into the City

A/N: Thanks to those who point out the silly mistakes I make. I do go back and fix them

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

**Phantomhive Manor **

Faye sat on the edge of her bed staring at the elaborate cabinet next to her window. It had arrived this morning and had apparently been commissioned by Sebastian for Faye's knives weeks ago.

It truly was a lovely piece. The corners and handles of the darkly varnished cabinet were a dusky gold. The inside was lined with blue satin. She wondered if the lining was blue by chance or because Sebastian had noticed blue was her favorite color. Knowing Sebastian, she figured the latter option was more likely.

Was she supposed to thank him for commissioning this? It had been paid for with Phantomhive money, but it was thorough of Sebastian to get something practical for Faye to store her knives in. Some might call it thoughtful, but since Sebastian was a demon Faye was sure thorough was a more accurate term.

She was grateful for the cabinet, and the appearance of the cabinet reminded Faye of something else. She needed to buy more knives. She had lost a few at the Ferro manor and had yet to replace them. She had extras, of course, but she preferred to have at least eight in reserve if not more. With this cabinet she could store even more than she had back at the grim reaper headquarters.

Faye would have to go to her supplier in London. He was in a shadier part of the city, but he did quality work. The only problem was that when she visited him before she was simply Faye and that was okay. Now that she was the Countess Phantomhive it would be a problem if she was recognized. Noblewomen simply did not purchase and carry around weaponry. She would have to be discreet, which meant dressing in her old cloths and not taking the Phantomhive carriage.

Faye left her room for Ciel's study. She would have to ask him if they had a carriage without the Phantomhive crest on it.

Outside the study Faye gave a perfunctory knock before entering. Ciel was seated behind the desk with business ledgers laid out in front of him. Sebastian was standing behind him.

"I need to go into London to purchase new knives," Faye announced. "Do we have a carriage without the Phantomhive crest that I can take?"

Ciel looked up with a frown. "We do have a carriage like that, but where do you plan to buy knives?"

"The same place I've always gone. It's a shop near the slums."

Ciel frowned harder. "That area can be dangerous Faye. I'll send Sebastian to pick some up for you. How many would you like?"

"I prefer to go myself. The shop owner knows me and I'm very particular about my knives. I know that Sebastian excels at everything he does, but I would rather be present for this."

Ciel spent a few moments trying to stare Faye down. Eventually he gave a sigh and said, "Fine, but you must take Sebastian with you."

"I can handle myself," Faye argued. "I have gone there plenty of times before."

"I won't budge on this, Faye. I promised you would be protected this time around. I will not let you go without Sebastian as an escort. Either you take Sebastian along with you or he goes by himself."

This time Faye tried to stare Ciel down, but to no avail. "Fine," she deadpanned. "Sebastian may accompany me."

"Shall I prepare the carriage now, my Lady?"

"Yes," Faye said with a defeated sigh.

They rode in silence with Faye staring out the window. Sebastian had tried to engage Faye in conversation a couple times, but to no avail.

They had returned from the Phantomhive London Townhouse three days ago. Sebastian acted as though nothing had happened. Faye, on the other hand, couldn't forget the sight of Sebastian's eyes glowing red. But still, she did have to admit that—

"Are you terribly upset with me?" Sebastian asked.

Faye looked over at Sebastian, her eyebrows raised in question.

"I did not mean to frighten you," he said softly. "It is true that you do frequently bait me when it comes to tasks to be done around the house. Don't think I haven't noticed you encouraging Baldroy, Finnian, and Mey-Rin in their antics. But it is not wise to bait me on certain subjects. Making me jealous is a very unwise course of action."

"That wasn't my intent. While I think highly of Agni I feel no attraction to him. I was pointing out that a human was nearly capable of the same feats as you in order to irritate you, not to make you jealous. That was not an emotion I expected from you."

"No? You know that I care for you."

"Care for?" Faye asked scornfully. "Demons are not capable of such tender emotions. I think you've used the wrong word."

Sebastian's eyes darkened. "Fine then. I _desire _you. I think of you constantly and wish for your company. How could it not make me jealous to think you might prefer another man's company over mine?"

Faye bit her tongue over her retort that she would prefer the company over a great many men over the company of a demon. Now was not the time to push him.

"I did not choose this infatuation. This is the result of the actions of your precious grim reapers."

"I did not choose this either! If I had known what William was planning I never would have allowed it. If you're so upset about the spell, why do you not avoid me then? Or why didn't you seek to kill me before Ciel ordered you to protect me? Then you would not have to deal with me or the spell."

The carriage slowed to a halt and Faye jumped out the door before Sebastian could get to it. She walked into the weapons shop and stopped, letting her eyes adjust to the dim light.

The man behind the counter looked up and smiled. "I was just thinking the other day that it had been a while since I've seen you, Miss Faye. I've recently gotten in a shipment of blade-heavy throwing knives I know you'll be interested in."

"Then I'm sure I'd be happy to see them, Mr. Roran."

He walked into a backroom for a moment and by the time he came back out Sebastian had entered the shop. "I'll be with you in a moment," he told Sebastian.

"There's no need. I'm here with the lady."

Mr. Roran looked Sebastian up and down in surprise and Faye mentally cursed. She should have made Sebastian change into some of Bard's clothing. Sebastian was, of course, dressed like a butler to the nobility. It wouldn't make any sense for a commoner to walk around with a butler. Faye hoped Mr. Roran wouldn't comment. After all, he had seen her come in with various grim reapers, which was a bit of an odd sight, when she had first started coming here to purchase knives.

Mr. Roran extolled the virtues of the knives as Faye tested the feel of one in her hand. Sebastian reached around her to pick one up and tossed it into the air before catching it again.

"Miss Faye speaks highly of the quality of your wares. I see her praise was not misplaced."

Mr. Roran gave Sebastian another odd look while Faye breathed a quiet sigh of relief, grateful Sebastian had referred to her as Miss instead of Lady.

"I'll take five of these," Faye said before Sebastian interrupted her and said, "We'll take ten."

At Faye's disgruntled look he said, "It is always better to be over prepared than under prepared. And I have the feeling you may be using your knives more now than you were under your previous employment."

"With all due respect, sir, Miss Faye is a prized customer. I think I'll take her request over yours."

Sebastian flashed a glare at the shopkeeper, but Faye was smirking. It was nice for someone to listen to her over the demon butler. Unfortunately, he probably had a point. Faye had used her magic far more than her knives while helping the grim reapers, but she couldn't use her magic too much on people who weren't going to die soon afterwards. The more people who saw her use magic, the more likely that rumors of Countess Phantomhive's strange ability would start circulating.

"I'm afraid my companion is correct. I should take ten. I'd also like to buy ten equally balanced knives. The brand I bought last time should suffice unless you have anything new?"

Mr. Roran shook his head and Faye went outside to wait while Sebastian paid and Mr. Roran wrapped up her purchases. She didn't want to stay in Sebastian's presence more than she had to.

Faye had been standing outside the shop for only a moment when she noticed a commotion across the street. A group of boys were yelling in an alleyway. It looked like they were kicking something. When Faye heard a yowl she realized it was some poor cat. Picking up her skirts, Faye ran across the street.

"Hey! Stop it!" The boys turned in front, but when they realized it was a woman they only sneered.

"You can't make us!" One of them taunted.

Looking at the ground Faye could see that the cat was dead. These boys had tortured and killed this defenseless animal for their own amusement. Faye didn't react well to the weak being picked on. Swiftly, Faye grabbed the arm of the one who had spoken and wrenched it behind his back. At this angle, it would have been easy to break the arm if Faye had desired.

"OW!" The boy yelled, though he was unable to move without causing himself more pain.

"Get out of here, all of you!" The boys ran off, yelling, "Crazy lady!" behind them as they went.

"Hey! Let me go!" Cried the boy Faye still had a hold of. Faye took a deep breath before releasing his arm. The cat was already dead. Hurting the boy now would serve no purpose.

Faye heard a soft mewling sound and looked at the ground in surprise. Her heart hurt when she saw the cat that had just been killed was the mother to a litter of kittens.

"Really, my Lady," came Sebastian's voice from behind Faye, "what is you think you're—"

Sebastian's voice cut off and Faye looked back in surprise. His eyes were on the kittens and he looked absolutely entranced.

"They're perfect," he murmured, kneeling on the ground and cradling one in his arms. "Look at those pointy ears. Those bright, innocent eyes." Faye stared down at Sebastian in amazement. He looked so captivated by the kittens Faye was pretty sure someone could come up and point a gun to the back of Sebastian's head without him being aware of it. Sebastian actually looked…cute. Not that Faye would ever repeat that to anyone as long as she lived.

Sebastian turned pleading eyes up at Faye. "We must take them home."

"We can't, Sebastian. Ciel is terribly allergic. You know that."

"It's no problem. We'll just keep them in my room. I already have four cats in my room and Ciel hasn't been affected by them in the least. It won't be a problem."

Faye looked at Sebastian in disbelief. How long had he been hiding four cats in his room for? "Ciel can't possibly know about them."

"He does not. Nor can he know about these, my Lady."

"Sebastian, are you honestly asking me to lie to my brother?"

"They will all die if we do not take them."

The last thing Faye wanted to do was lie to Ciel, but looking down at the kittens she couldn't find it in herself to say no. "All right," Faye sighed. "Let's bring them all home with us."

There were five kittens. Sebastian grabbed three and Faye grabbed two. She couldn't help but smile. She really did love cats, and these little ones were too adorable. Once in the carriage Sebastian sat on the floor to entertain four of the kittens while Faye kept one of them on her lap.

They had been riding in silence for quite some time, both absorbed in the felines when Sebastian said, "I really don't mind the spell." Faye looked up in surprise, but Sebastian's attention still appeared to be on the kittens attacking his gloves. "Being immortal gets so monotonous. The centuries pass and humans never change. This spell brings something new and fresh into my life. I'm experiencing emotions I never have before, emotions I believed I never would experience." He finally looked up with a small smile on his face. "It's a bit exhilarating."

Faye turned her attention back to the cat on her lap, thinking over his words. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to be immortal. What sort of purpose you could possibly find in life.

She was also still caught up in what had happened at the townhouse. Sebastian had scared her, yes, but the moment he realized she was frightened he had backed off. Sebastian was a powerful demon who could easily overpower Faye, but for the most part he was very respectful of Faye's boundaries. Faye was grateful for that. Perhaps he was so conscientious of Faye's feelings because he felt more for her than she thought he did.

Maybe, Faye thought, just maybe there were worse things in the world than having a demon spelled to fall in love with you.

When they reached Phantomhive Manor they stealthily sneaked the kittens into Sebastian's room. Faye couldn't help but shake her head at the sight. He had outfitted his closet with cat beds and various cat toys. The four cats he already had were quite interested in the kittens, who were tired after playing with Sebastian and immediately fell asleep after being placed in the cat beds.

"You are welcome to come visit them, if you would like," Sebastian told her. "I only ask that you give me warning before entering my room."

"Fair enough," Faye said. She had no desire to enter Sebastian's room, but she would like to spend time with the kittens. "After all—" Whatever Faye was going to say was completely wiped from her mind when she saw what was lying on Sebastian's pillow. "That's my shawl!"

Before Faye could blink, Sebastian had made it to the bed and hid the shawl behind his back. "It's mine."

"No it is not! That's my favorite shawl and it's been missing since—"

"The night William cast the spell," Sebastian interrupted. "He needed a personal item of significance to you in order to complete the spell, so he took this."

So not only had William bound a demon to her, but he had stolen from her as well. It was like adding insult to injury. She never would have guessed him capable of such lowly acts. "As that may be, why do you have it now?"

Sebastian stayed silent.

"It's my favorite shawl, Sebastian. May I have it back?" Faye held her hand out, but instead of giving it to her Sebastian folded it up and put it at the top of his closet.

"No, you may not. Consider it compensation for what has been done to me."

"A spell made you infatuated with a human so you want my shawl in return?"

Again, Sebastian gave no answer. Instead he placed a hand on her back and gently escorted her out of his room. "I do thank you for your understanding, my Lady." Before Faye could reply, Sebastian's door was being shut in her face. She stared at the door, stunned. She really didn't know why he wanted to keep her shawl, but there were certainly worse things for him to do.

Sebastian leaned back against his door, feeling embarrassed. He would have rather Faye not seen that. He realized it was silly of him to want to keep the shawl, but he enjoyed having something of hers, something that was precious to her, always available to him. He was sad when the shawl had lost her scent, but it was still a reminder of her. And it was her favorite color, blue. For some inane reason this made the shawl even more precious to him.


	14. The Cult

A/N: Just making a note here that I am aware of Angela's name, but if felt awkward to work it into the story, so she gets to be known as the fallen angel.

Also, I added chapter titles because with the prologue my chapter numbers didn't match up with 's numbering and it was getting confusing.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

**Phantomhive Manor **

Faye, Ciel, and Sebastian were walking down the hall when they heard Tanaka laughing along with an unfamiliar voice. They looked into the kitchen to see Ash, the Queen's aide, drinking tea with Tanaka.

"What are you doing here?" Ciel asked in surprise.

"Ash delivers the Queen's letters," Sebastian explained. "He has always been the one to bring by her Majesty's orders."

Faye was just as surprised as Ciel. Though Ash may have technically been a servant, it seemed odd that someone who apparently spoke for the ruler of an entire country on a regular basis would perform a task as menial as delivering a letter. Faye had assumed one of the royal couriers were delivering the Queen's letters.

It was strange to see the Queen's aide sitting in Phantomhive manor laughing and having tea with Tanaka, but there was still something about the feel of him that didn't sit right with Faye. She didn't like the idea that he was regularly coming to her home.

Ash stood up to hand a letter to Ciel. "There is an abandoned convent that has been taken over by a cult. They appear to have the Book of Doomsday, which holds a record of every human's virtues and evil doings. We're not sure what exactly is going on in the cult, but we believe they are intending to revolt against the government. The Queen has left it to you to handle this. Either disband the cult or eliminate them. The choice is up to you." With that, Ash gave a small bow before Tanaka showed him to the door.

Ciel read the letter and gave a small sigh. "It looks as though this convent has recently ordered a large amount of coffins."

"I take it this means we'll be paying a visit to the Undertaker?" Sebastian asked.

"_The_ Undertaker?" Faye asked slowly. "Is there a particular mortician you are acquainted with, Ciel?"

"Undertaker is his name," Ciel explained, "or, at least, the only name we have to call him by. He is very talented at his job and has helped us on a number of cases. We'll pay him a visit and see if he has any information on the matter."

Faye was a bit concerned with Ciel's seeming familiarity with a mortician. She couldn't imagine how one could be helpful to the Queen's watch dog.

**The Mortuary **

The three companions walked into the creepy looking building and stopped in surprise. Grell Sutcliffe was standing in the middle of the room wearing long black robes. Meanwhile, off to the side was a large urn filled with salt. Stuffed inside the urn was a man with a scarred face and long gray hair. Ciel truly did have the most interesting acquaintances.

"What are you doing here, Grell?" Ciel demanded.

"How insolent, to be questioned by a child." Ciel's eyebrow twitched at the word child. "I'm doing my job, of course. William sent me to retrieve a cinematic record that was stolen. I fell sleep and ended up here." Grell sidled up to Sebastian. "Perhaps I should not have stopped breathing while I slept, but I was hoping my Prince Charming would come and wake me up." He puckered his lips and moved towards Sebastian, who looked disgusted as he took a big step away from the reaper.

"I have a favor to ask of you," Ciel said, ignoring Grell and Sebastian.

"Oh, all right," Undertaker conceded, "but perhaps we should get me out of this jar and back into my clothes first."

Faye waited outside while that was accomplished and when she returned she realized something she had missed before. Undertaker was a reaper. She knew she could sense a reaper's soul in the room, but had assumed it was just Grell she was feeling. Did Sebastian and Ciel know that Undertaker was a reaper?

"There's a cult operating out of an abandoned convent," Ciel explained. "They've recently purchased a number of coffins from you. Do you know anything about them?"

"Yes, yes," Undertaker said with a nod. "This is not the first purchase they've made. They're very heavily guarded for being a simple cult."

"They're more than likely not just a simple cult. They have more devious plans in mind. Will you help us infiltrate them?"

"Hmmm," Undertaker rubbed his chin as he considered Ciel's request. "I'll do it! Free of charge, even. Here's how we'll go about it…"

**Abandoned Convent **

Sebastian climbed out of the coffin as Undertaker talked to the cultist, ushering Sebastian, Faye, and Grell out as well. The four of them hid in the bushes until the cultist looked over and said that they were welcome to come in.

Brushing leaves off their clothes, they followed the man inside along with the wagon full of coffins. Once inside the man took them to a chapel and told them they were free to look around before he left to take care of the order of coffins.

"That was far too easy," Sebastian commented, feeling suspicious. A cult group planning to rebel against the government should be trying harder to hide themselves. Did groups wanting to join them regularly come? Or was the cult confident in their ability to keep newcomers inside against their will if they were to try to leave?

"This place is creepy," Faye deadpanned. "It's like a monastery, but instead of just men there's women and children as well."

"Creepy or not, we need to find out what's going on here," Ciel said. "The locals seem willing enough to give up information. We'll just have to ask them."

While Ciel and Faye talked, Grell got into an argument with some children passing by. "Unclean! Unclean!" They yelled.

"You ignorant brats! How dare you call me unclean!" He reached out and smacked one of them on the head.

"Eww! Now I have to cleanse myself!" The boys ran off as a woman in a nun's habit walked up.

"You must be newcomers. Everyone after a certain age is called unclean here. When we lose the innocence of childhood we become stained by the world."

Sebastian noticed the woman giving him particular attention. She may have been wearing a nun's habit, but she definitely wasn't thinking pure thoughts about him. He knew the perfect way to get the information they needed…and had no desire to do it. It would be incredibly easy to seduce her and get the information, but his very body rebelled against the idea.

There was a time when sleeping with some random woman would have meant nothing to him and wouldn't have been a bother. Now he only wanted Faye. The idea of touching another woman intimately was revolting. He knew it was just because of the spell, but everything about Faye captivated him. Her hair, her eyes, her body, the way she moved. He knew if he were to seduce this woman his every thought would be about how she didn't compare to Faye. Her hair wasn't dark enough, her eyes weren't blue, she didn't have the toned muscle Faye did.

There was also the fact that seducing this woman was hardly the way to convince Faye to accept him. He was sure Faye would never trust him if she saw him with another woman. It would also decrease her opinion of him, which wasn't all that high to begin with.

Luckily, there was more than one effective method of getting information out of people. Fear could work just as well as attraction.

"What is it exactly that members of this convent believe?" Sebastian asked conversationally as he moved towards the woman.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you about our beliefs at this point. You must become initiates first. You'll gradually learn about our beliefs and way of life as you live here and learn from the priest."

"I'm afraid that just won't do," Sebastian said, letting his eyes glow red as he backed her against the wall. "We need to know now. You will comply, won't you?"

Her lip started to tremble as she stared at him in wide-eyed fear. "What are you?" She whispered.

Sebastian gave a slow smile and leaned down closer. "I'm merely one hell of a butler."

Confusion entered her eyes and she stared at his companions for help. Realizing that they would give her none, she tried to run. Sebastian whipped out a kitchen knife and slammed it into her nun's habit, pinning her to the wall. When she noticed she was stuck she cringed against the wall.

"Our religion is based on the Book of Doomsday, which is kept by the priest," she stammered. "People will dirty the book if they live for too long, but the priest can purify parts of the filth. The book is a record of the past, and of the future for the chosen children of heaven's choir. Only boys are chosen for the choir."

"Does the heaven's choir sing?" Ciel asked.

"No, but beautiful sounds come from the priest's bedroom," she said dreamily.

Out of the corner of his eye Sebastian noticed Faye's hand automatically reach for one of her knives. That comment would set her off, especially given the enchanted tone the woman had used.

"Is there anything else of use you can tell us?" Sebastian asked.

The woman shrank against the wall again. "No. I told you the most important parts."

"And we thank you for that," Sebastian said before pulling his knife out of her habit and the wall. Grabbing her chin, Sebastian tilted her head up until she was looking into his eyes. He changed his eyes to his full demon form and her face turned sheet white before she passed out. He caught her and gently laid her beneath one of the pews.

Turning back to the others Sebastian saw Faye's hand was still in her false pocket, gripping a knife. Her eyes read absolute murder. Sebastian smiled to himself. Faye liked to act like she was above revenge and against killing others, but she held just as much rage as her brother. It was just different things that set them off. How he'd love to see her let that fury loose.

"What now, my Lord?"

"If only boys are chosen for this heaven's choir, I need to get myself chosen."

"No, Ciel!" Faye cried.

"She's right," Grell said, appearing wearing boy's clothes that were several sizes too small for him. "I'm obviously the perfect choice." He struck a pose.

"I agree," Faye said. "Let's send Grell instead."

Ciel gave her a look.

Faye clenched her hands on the bench beneath her. Ciel had been chosen for the heaven's choir and would be brought to the priest in front of the congregation soon. Since children were pure according to these people's beliefs, she doubted they'd see a repeat of what happened earlier, but she was still afraid for Ciel.

Earlier in the afternoon they had seen two people brought to the priest who had judged them out of the Book of Doomsday. A movie had played, but Grell claimed it wasn't a cinematic record, so the priest couldn't actually see the past.

Faye had no idea what was going on in this place, nor did she particularly care at the moment. All she wanted was for Ciel to be safe. Sebastian had chastised her, asking if she didn't believe in his ability to protect her brother. That wasn't the problem, she remembered William telling her that demons will go to extreme lengths to protect the human they're contracted to. It was just the big sister in her crying out at seeing her younger brother in potential danger.

Ciel came out and walked to the pulpit. The priest reached out to caress Ciel's head, which made Faye's stomach churn. Then the priest wrapped his hands around Ciel's throat and began strangling him.

"No!" Faye cried as she jumped up and began running to the front, a knife in her hand.

Before she could reach them Sebastian crashed through a window above and killed the priest. Faye was relieved, but they would have to get out of here fast. Killing off this group's leader would probably whip them into a frenzy.

Sebastian turned to another woman by the pulpit and tried to attack her as well. It was white haired woman who reminded Faye of Ash. Smoothly sliding around Sebastian, the woman grabbed Ciel and, sprouting wings, flew up into the air. Faye watched in disbelief. Grim reapers, demons, and now angels? But no, Faye thought, this couldn't be an angel. A being of light couldn't be involved in a warped cult like this. Plus, Faye recognized the feel of this woman's soul. It had the same dark, twisted feeling as the one behind the dolls put together by Drocell. This woman must be a fallen angel.

The woman smiled down at Grell. "No doubt you're here looking for the stolen cinematic record. I have it, and it's the perfect thing to bind a demon." She spread out her hand and lines of cinematic record wrapped around Sebastian, immobilizing him.

Faye finally reached the front and threw her knife at the woman, but she merely flew higher. "Careful," she mocked. "You wouldn't want to hurt your brother, would you?"

"What do you want with him?" Faye cried. Behind her, Grell frantically cut through the cinematic record with his scissors, trying to free Sebastian. Faye would have loved to help, but only death scythes could cut the cinematic record.

As Grell finally got Sebastian freed, the woman took off with Ciel through a glowing portal. Sebastian scooped Faye up in his arms and they followed her through the portal, Grell tagging along behind.

Faye looked around in surprise when they landed. "Why are we at The Grim Reaper Dispatch Society library?"

"There's no time to be concerned over that now," Sebastian said, running for the doors.

They opened the doors and nearly ran into William. He looked at Sebastian in distaste. "Honestly Grell, the level that you've been demoted to isn't bad enough for you? Bringing a demon here of all places may be enough to get your death scythe taken away entirely."

"But I'm investigating, just like you—"

"We're following an angel who has kidnapped my brother," Faye interrupted, pushing past Grell and Sebastian. "She's brought him here and you _will _help us get him back. You owe me, William."

William adjusted his glasses with a guilty look. "Yes, of course. We'll search for him immediately."

They found him on the second level of the library. Ciel was in the angel's lap with his cinematic record swirling around him, except he didn't have any fatal wounds for the record to be pouring out of. "How's she doing that?" Faye demanded.

"Ciel's must be the cinematic record that was stolen," William murmured. "She's using it to rewrite his history."

"Yes, I am," she admitted with a serene smile. "I'm purifying him. He is stained and full of anger and hate. I will take all of that away and leave him pure."

Sebastian moved to intervene, but William held out an arm out in front of him. "Interfering could break his mind. And if it doesn't, it still won't fix the memories that have been changed. Only he can decide whether to accept the changed memories or not."

"How dare you?" Faye demanded, enraged that someone would treat her brother's memories as though they were something to be toyed with.

"Why are you upset?" The fallen angel asked with an innocent tilt of her head. "I'm fixing him. If you loved your brother you would wish for him to be whole again."

"Of course I don't want my brother to be angry and hurt," Faye defended, defensive and upset at being accused of not loving her brother. "But if he wants to hold onto his rage and pain then that is _his _choice! You don't get to decide who he is!"

The angel looked at Faye condescendingly, but at that moment Ciel's eyes popped open and his cinematic record rolled back up inside him.

"So you choose to stay tainted," she hissed. "I would have fixed you and taken all your stains away."

"And what good is a life based on false memories?" Ciel asked as he rolled off her lap and stepped away from her. "I'd rather keep all my dark emotions than be wrapped up in your lies."

"So be it," she replied, standing up. Another white glow started behind the angel and Faye panicked. If this creature was after Ciel, this wouldn't be the end of it. And fallen angels were evil souls, right?

Faye held out her right hand and chanted, "It mye noc!" Faye's attempt to bind Sebastian had failed utterly, but she hoped that fallen angels were not as powerful as demons. Also, her conviction this time was much stronger. When she had been binding Sebastian it was to stop him from killing Grell, someone she had only negative feelings for. This time it was to protect her brother.

The angel had started to fly towards her portal, clearing the second floor balcony. When Faye cast her spell it did what it always did, which was anchor the target of the spell to the ground. Except, since the angel was flying the ground was on the first floor, out of Faye's spell range. Once the angel hit the floor she'd be free.

Faye ran to the balcony and rolled over it so she'd reach the ground at nearly the same time. Good thing William had taught her how to fall. She was able to land on her feet with her right hand still raised, though the impact sent pain shooting up her legs.

"You can't bind me!" The fallen angel shrieked, her voice warping.

"It mye noc!" Faye yelled louder. More brightly colored strings wrapped around the angel, trapping her wings tight to her body. Faye felt her body start to tremble from the energy she was expending.

Sebastian and William soon dropped to the ground on either side of Faye. William extended his pruner and Sebastian pulled out his kitchenware. Within moments they eliminated the creature and Faye's spell strings flickered out of existence. Faye took one step before her legs gave out and the world turned black.

**Phantomhive Manor **

Faye blinked her eyes open as bright light flooded the room. She looked around in confusion, feeling disoriented. She wasn't sure where she was or what day it was. Sebastian was standing next to her window, having just opened her curtains. That was why it was so bright.

"Good morning, my Lady. It is a wonderful sight to see you open your eyes again."

She was in her room at Phantomhive Manor. But how had she gotten here? "What day is it?"

"It has been two days since our escapades with the cult. You've been sleeping for two nights and a day. How are you feeling?"

Faye paused for a moment to take stalk of herself, then asked, "Is Ciel all right?"

"The young master is fine, other than being worried over you. I shall tell him you are awake after I get you something to eat and drink."

Characteristic of his normal service, Sebastian returned within a few short moments with a feast and tea.

Faye expected him to fetch Ciel when she started eating, but instead he stayed by her bedside. She looked up at him, a question in her eyes.

"You were very impressive back at the library. I admire the way you accepted your brother the way he is despite the fact that you do not support his struggle for revenge."

"What else can I do?" Faye asked. "Loving someone means wanting what's best for them, but it also means accepting them as they are."

"Well said, my Lady," Sebastian complemented with a bow. "I shall go and get your brother for you now."


	15. Grell's Designs

A/N: This chapter wasn't going to originally make it into the story. It was just something I thought up when I was imagining Sebastian and Faye interacting with each other, but then I thought I needed more writing of those two evolving their relationship anyway. I hope you all enjoy this chapter as much as I did!

Also, whist is an actual card game played in England in the nineteenth century. I have no idea why them playing an accurate card game matters so much to me.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

**Phantomhive Manor **

"Ohhh, I'm just rubbish at this game!" Finny complained, covering his face with his cards.

"Come on, Finny, get your act together!" Bard yelled. "The girls have won the last two games! We have to give a better showing than this!"

"Don't worry about it, boys," Mey-Rin said loftily. "Our winning is merely a sign of our superior intellect."

Faye hid a smile behind her cards as Bard glared at Mey-Rin. They were playing whist, which required four players working in teams of two. It was girls against boys and girls were doing much better. It helped that Faye had the most experience with this game and it was only Bard's second time playing.

When Faye's companions stopped talking and stared awkwardly at their cards Faye turned to see Sebastian standing in the doorway giving them all a disapproving stare.

"It is not proper for a Countess to play card games with her servants," he chided. "If you wish to play I'm sure the Midfords would be happy to come over and play with you and the young master."

"I spent three years _not _being a Countess and one of the many lessons this taught me was how to recognize good company when I meet it." Bard's, Finny's, and Mey-Rin's expressions lightened, but they still wouldn't look up from their cards. They enjoyed spending time with Faye, but they also stood in awe/fear of Sebastian. His word was usually law when it came to the rest of the servants in the manor. The problem in this case was that Faye, of course, outranked Sebastian. On the one hand, those three didn't like displeasing Sebastian, but on the other hand they were making the Lady of the house happy. It was a difficult quandary for them.

As Faye and Sebastian entered a staring contest she wondered if Sebastian recognized the irony of him condemning her for spending her free time with the servants while at the same time he used every opportunity to try to increase her affections for him.

"I must be going out now," he finally said, with one last stern look at the four companions. "I have a lead to follow up on for our latest case."

"What lead is this?" Faye questioned. If Sebastian was going without Ciel or Faye it was likely just preliminary work on the case, but she was still curious.

"I have heard there was a witness to the crime who often spends his time at the abandoned warehouse near the docks. I'm going to see if I can find this witness."

"Well, good luck then," Faye said dismissively as she turned back to her card game.

After Sebastian's departure the other three gradually regained their original excitement over the game and began teasing each other again.

Hours later the final scour was five games to the girls, two to the boys. They hadn't realized how much time had passed until Ciel showed up at the kitchen demanding to know where dinner was.

Faye frowned as she looked out the window. It was dusk and Sebastian was nowhere in sight. He had left hours ago and should have been back long before now. What could possibly be keeping him?

"What time is your business meeting tonight?" Faye asked.

"It's in one hour. I'm lucky it's an after dinner tea meeting. If it were a dinner party the whole affair would be ruined. Where is Sebastian?"

"He went to interview a potential witness, but I don't know why he hasn't returned yet. Perhaps he found a lead he felt he should follow up on?"

"Sebastian never takes this long to investigate cases," Ciel argued. "He interviewed over thirty suspects in under an hour for the Jack the Ripper case."

"Something must have held him up," Faye said with a frown, wondering what could hold a demon up.

Ciel stared at Faye. "The last time he got held up was because you used a spell to bind him. I doubt something like that has happened a second time."

Faye held her arms out helplessly. They had no answers or guesses as to why Sebastian wasn't home and where he might be now.

In the meantime, Tanaka took over and organized the other servants to make dinner and prepare the tea for Ciel's meeting. Shortly before the meeting, Faye's concern began to get the better of her. It wasn't as though Sebastian could be hurt. The only thing she knew of that could hurt a demon was a death scythe, but it was very odd that he wasn't home.

Faye spent a fair bit of time pacing before finally giving in and taking a carriage to London. The chances of Sebastian still being in the abandoned warehouse he had said he was going to were very small, but it was the only idea Faye had. At least going was better than doing nothing but worrying at home.

Faye had the carriage stopped near the abandoned warehouse and carefully crept up to it, a knife already in hand. She wasn't necessarily expecting trouble, but an abandoned warehouse at night was rather creepy and might attract all sorts of lowlifes. It was better to be prepared.

Faye slowly entered the warehouse and noticed the flicker of candlelight coming from a room deeper inside. She really hoped she wasn't about to walk in on some homeless vagabonds.

When she got closer she heard a voice.

"Oh Sebby, isn't this so romantic? You and me in a little hideaway for a clandestine meeting. Don't you think these candles add to the mood?"

Faye froze when she heard that voice. It couldn't possibly be…She crept closer and peered around the door. Sebastian was lying immobile on a table with his jacket open and his shirt unbuttoned. Meanwhile, Grell Sutcliffe twirled around the table, squirming in excitement.

"I can't believe I finally have you all to myself! You're always paying so much attention to that little brat you follow around. Let me show you what a _real _man can do. I know this drug makes it so that you can't move, but I promise you can still _feel_, Sebby."

What. Was. This?

"Don't you just love how I lured you out here with planting hints that I was a witness in the case you're working on? It was simply a genius idea. And you gave a good fight in trying to get away from me, but the chase makes the capture all the more satisfying."

Sebastian was glaring balefully at Grell. "If you follow through on this, I will make sure you aren't _capable _of being intimate with another being for the rest of your life."

Grell froze nervously and Faye took advantage of the break in conversation to step into the room. "I'm not exactly certain what is going on here, but I promise you it will go no further."

Grell whirled around in surprise. "You! How dare you come to interrupt my precious personal time with my dear Sebby. This is an outrage and I won't stand for it!" He stamped his foot to emphasize his point.

"Truly?" Faye asked before raising her hand and chanting, "Roct myr nukt." Rather than the characteristic bright strings most of Faye's spells used, transparent red walls and a ceiling appeared to surround Grell.

"What is this?" Grell demanded in a panicked voice as he tried pushing his hands against each of the walls. "It won't budge!"

"William saw many uses for me as an associate of the Grim Reaper Society," Faye explained. "One of those uses was to capture rogue grim reapers. As such, he taught me a spell to imprison reapers. Not to worry, though. The spell is only temporary. You should be free by morning."

"This is unacceptable!" Grell cried, punctuating each word by slamming his fists into the wall. "I finally had my Sebby all to myself and this terrible woman comes and ruins it!"

Faye ignored him as she studied Sebastian. How was she going to get him out of here?

"If I got you off the table and helped support your weight, do you think you could shuffle out of here?" Faye asked.

"I'm afraid not, my Lady. The only movements I'm able to make are those needed for me to talk and move my eyes, otherwise I'm quite immobile."

Faye sighed. This was not going to be easy. "All right then."

She scooted his legs mostly off the table before walking to the other side of the table and slinging his arm around her shoulder. With one big heave she got him off the table, but almost collapsed under his weight. "You're heavy," she complained, sincerely hoping she would be able to make it all the way to the carriage with Sebastian. She couldn't ask the carriage driver for help. That would lead to too many awkward questions.

"I deeply apologize for the inconvenience, my love." Faye froze and Grell stopped his pounding.

"Wh-what?" Grell stammered. "What did you just say?" That was what Faye wanted to know. Had Sebastian said that merely for Grell's benefit in the hope that it would get him to back off? Or had it just slipped out? This really wasn't something that Faye wanted to be analyzing at the moment.

"You wretched woman! When I get out of here, I'll kill you!"

Faye narrowed her eyes at Grell. "All right. I'll just relay that back to William then."

"Ah…" Grell laughed awkwardly before backpedaling. "I didn't mean it! I was speaking in the heat of the moment! It was just my passionate lover's heart, you see. Of course I'd never kill someone who has given so much service to the dispatch society and who has so many friends among the grim reapers."

Faye took a few difficult steps forward when Sebastian spoke up. "If you threaten or come near her again, you won't need to worry about William because I will cut off all your limbs and once you've reached the point of unbearable agony, I'll cut out your heart."

Sebastian's tone sent chills running down Faye's spine. He hadn't raised his voice at all, but his tone was deadly serious. She was used to his threats being issued in a calm and polite manner befitting a butler. She had never heard this tone before.

Faye continued on and Grell spoke no more, having been cowed into a corner of his little box.

"I truly do appreciate you coming to my rescue," Sebastian said quietly as Faye labored toward the door. She was in no position to talk. She could feel sweat dripping down her face and all her focus was on making it to the door. It probably would have been easier to lay Sebastian on the ground and drag him along the dusty floor, but that seemed wrong. It was rude to drag people, even if they were demons.

"I never would have expected you to come looking for me. Were you concerned, my Lady?"

"No talking," Faye ground out.

"Yes, of course. This is rather taxing for you, isn't it? If you'd like me to pay Grell back for this effort of yours, you've merely to say the word."

By some miracle, Faye was able to get Sebastian to the carriage. She opened the door and lost her hold on him, dropping his torso face first onto the floor of the carriage.

"Are you all right, Milady?" The carriage driver called back in concern.

"Fine! I'm fine! I apologize for the noise!" Turning back to Sebastian she whispered, "I'm sorry!"

"It's all right, my Lady," he said, his voice muffled by the floor. "I understand this isn't an easy feat for you to accomplish."

She got him rolled around so he was facing up before she climbed into the carriage. She hooked her hands under his arms and pulled him up so his back was braced against the wall and his legs were sprawled on the floor. She shut the door and wrapped on the wall to let the driver know she was ready.

At first she tried to sit on the bench, but each bump the carriage hit would knock Sebastian to one side or the other. While it wasn't hurting him, it must have been awkward. Giving up, Faye got on the floor and sat on one side of him with her feet on the other side so her legs made a bridge across him. Now she could keep him from falling down. Except now she was also next to his bare chest.

Faye gave a quiet sigh. This night just kept getting more and more awkward. Blushing furiously, Faye straddled Sebastian so she could do up his shirt. She paused for a second. She had never seen a chest and stomach like _that _before. That shameful thought made her blush even more and she sincerely hoped it was too dark in the carriage for Sebastian to notice. Could demons see in the dark?

Sebastian looked up at Faye with interest and she realized he didn't know what she was doing.

"I'm buttoning up your shirt for you," she explained. "It's indecent for a butler to go around with a bare chest."

"Of course," Sebastian agreed. "Though if you were to desire to take advantage of me in this situation, I would not complain."

"You're drugged. Why would you care?"

"As Grell said, while I cannot move much, I can feel." Faye gave him a look that very clearly said she was not impressed. Sebastian smiled. "And besides, just the sight of you on top of me and touching me would be more than enough for me."

Was it possible for her face to get any redder? How could he just say things like that?

Ignoring him as much as possible, Faye buttoned up his shirt as quickly as she could before returning to her previous position.

"Why did you come for me?" He asked after a couple minutes of silence.

That was an excellent question. Had she feared for his safety? Why else would she have gone out looking for him? Ciel had been irritated that Sebastian wasn't home, but irritation wasn't what had prompted Faye to leave the manor.

"I don't know," Faye answered softly. There was probably a more definitive answer to Sebastian's question, but Faye didn't want to think too closely on it.

When they reached Phantomhive Manor Faye ran inside to get Finny, who carried Sebastian to his bed. Luckily, all the cats appeared to be sleeping or hiding since none came out while Finnian was in the room.

Once Finny left Faye lingered behind, feeling bad for Sebastian. Being helpless would be insanely frustrating for anyone. She couldn't imagine what it would be like for a demon as powerful as Sebastian to not have the use of his own body.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" Faye asked, knowing there probably wasn't anything she could possibly do, but feeling a compulsion to ask anyway.

"I truly wish you would use this opportunity to take advantage of me."

Faye made a very unladylike exasperated noise. "Never mind, forget that I asked. Will you be better by morning?"

"Yes. The effects of the drug should be gone by then."

Faye gave a nod and turned to go, but looked back at Sebastian one more time. "Does it truly not bother you that your feelings for me are manufactured by a spell?" She questioned, not sure why she was bringing that up now.

"Whether it bothers me or not is a moot point. The spell William used is a powerful one, and cast by two reapers makes it even stronger. My feelings for you will last for over a century, yet all I have are the few short decades of your mortal life. I do not wish to waste them being angry over something I cannot change."

Faye left then, feeling upset at Sebastian's words. He did not have decades to be near Faye. He had until he ate Ciel's soul. Faye would not tolerate Sebastian's presence after he had eradicated her little brother from all existence.

She needed to remember that was truly why Sebastian was here. Not to be their butler, not to help them as the Queen's watchdog, but to eat Ciel's soul. Somehow, the more time she spent with Sebastian the easier it was to forget that.


	16. World Fair

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

**Phantomhive Manor **

"It looks as though the Queen will be at the World Fair in Paris next week," Ciel said idly as he read the newspaper.

"Do you think we should go, Ciel?" Faye asked.

"To the World Fair? I wasn't aware those sorts of things interested you."

"That's not what I meant, Ciel. I mean so that we may speak with the Queen. She stays in isolation here in London, but in Paris we may get the opportunity to see and talk with her."

"Is this about Lau's claim that the Queen plans to plunge Europe into war?" Sebastian asked. "I fail to see how that's your concern, and asking her that may very well end up with you being tried for treason."

A week ago Ciel and Faye had been asked to investigate the death of one of the Queen's agents. He was a man who had worked undercover within criminal organizations and the Queen wanted an item of his retrieved. The man's corpse contained no personal items, so the siblings delved into the organization the man had been investigating.

They discovered that Lau was behind the man's death and that he had stolen the item, which was a letter. He divulged to them that the contents of the letter proved Queen Victoria's efforts to start a large scale war in Europe. After retrieving the letter they attempted to bring Ran-Mao and Lau to the police, but the two had fled the country. Presumably, they were on their way back to China now.

When they gave the letter over to Ash he seemed very suspicious as to whether the Phantomhives had read the contents of the letter. They claimed they had not, which was technically true, but Ash still seemed doubtful.

"It is best you forget about that letter," Sebastian said. "We don't even know if Lau was telling the truth or if he was merely toying with the two of you. He likely knew that your and the young master's loyalty to the Queen would prevent you from reading the letter to verify his words."

"And if the Queen does want to start a war, there's nothing we can do about it," Ciel added.

Ciel and Sebastian both had a point, but Faye had a burning desire to know for herself. This was a monarch the Phantomhive family had pledged their lives to. Faye's parents and grandparents had died in service to this woman while working to make England a safer place. Faye needed to know that she could continue to faithfully serve the Queen. If England's ruler was working to start a war, Faye could no longer act as her watch dog in good conscience.

"It's not as though it wouldn't make sense for us to be there," Faye argued. "According to our story of my past I was living in France before returning here to be with you. The World Fair would be an excellent reason for my wanting to return for a visit."

Ciel gave Faye a long-suffering look. "If we talked to the Queen about her possible plans for starting a war either she would have no idea what we were talking about, or she would believe we read the letter. In the latter case, as Sebastian said, we would be tried for treason."

"So we are to do nothing while the Queen may be making plans that could lead to innumerable deaths?"

"And if we do manage to find out that the Queen is planning a war, what are we to do about it?" Ciel inquired.

Unfortunately, Faye hadn't gotten that far in her thinking. They had achieved astonishing feats as the Queen's watch dog with the help of Sebastian, but did that compare with stopping a war? And how far would Faye be willing to go to stop a war?

Ciel sighed. "If you're not going to let this go I suppose we could go to the World Fair, but you must promise you will not do anything reckless. We will be careful and subtle if we're able to talk with the Queen."

**Paris **

"This place is amazing," Faye said as she, Ciel, and Sebastian walked around the exposition. "I think it's worth coming to all on its own."

"I suppose," Ciel said drolly as Sebastian smiled indulgingly.

"Is there a particular exhibit you would like to see next, my Lady?"

Faye was distracted by Ciel frowning at a pair of men standing off to the side of them. "They claim there's an angel in the Wonders of the World exhibit," one of the men was saying.

"Impossible!" The other man exclaimed, "But it may be interesting to see." Ciel stared after the men as they walked away.

"Would you like to view the Wonders of the World exhibit next, my Lord?" Sebastian asked.

"I suppose," he answered grudgingly.

They found the Wonders of the World exhibit and headed straight for an exhibit that had attracted a large crowed. Inside a glass case was a monkey with wings put on it.

"How ridiculous," Ciel scoffed. "People actually think this is worth seeing?"

Ciel had turned to leave when the monkey's eyes glowed red. It broke out of its case and began attacking the fairgoers. Ciel's face turned ashen and Faye wondered in the monkey reminded Ciel of the fallen angel who kidnapped him.

Sebastian moved to shield Faye and Ciel. "My Lord, my Lady, please leave immediately. I will handle this problem."

Faye took Ciel's hand and they ran out of the building amongst the fearful screams of the others in the room. When they reached outside Faye spotted a figure all in black entering the lift of the Eiffel Tower.

"Ciel!" Faye exclaimed, pointing at what she saw. "Let's go!" Grabbing Ciel's hand again, Faye ran for the lift. Once they got on, she paused awkwardly. Using the same lift as the Queen without her permission would be the height of rudeness, but Faye could claim they did not know the Queen was already here.

The lift doors closed a moment later and they began to ascend. The Queen was sitting at the very back of the lift car and she appeared to be looking at the Phantomhive siblings. It was a little difficult to tell with the veil.

"Ciel, Faye, how wonderful to see you here," the Queen said. Faye was taken aback by the Queen's voice. She sounded like a young woman. It had been many years since Faye had heard the Queen's voice, but Faye remembered her voice as much rougher than this. Her mind must be playing tricks on her.

The Queen looked out the window. "Isn't this view wonderful? This is such an exciting time to be alive, but there are problems that must be taken care of before the new century arrives." She pointed out the window. "There's a stain over there. Stagnation over there." Her arm moved until her finger was pointing at Ciel. "And uncleanliness right here. For the new century to be pure I had to cleanse the house that had taken on all that is negative in our nation. The house of Phantomhive."

Faye felt as though all her air had been stolen. This wasn't possible. The Queen could not have just admitted to killing Faye and Ciel's parents. For being responsible for the hell both siblings went to under the evil hands of twisted occults. Not after everything the Phantomhives had done for the Queen and for England.

When the lift came to a stop the Queen calmly stood up and walked past the siblings. Ciel followed and Faye numbly stumbled after him. They had to climb steps to get to the viewing platform and as they climbed the Queen sang, "London Bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down. London Bridge is falling down, my fair lady."

The Queen stopped when she got to the platform and Ciel tightly gripped the railing. "And what of Faye and I?" He demanded. "You say you murdered our parents to cleanse our house, but why were we sent off to be tortured?"

"You were so young," the Queen said. "It would have been wrong to let you die in the fire."

"So what you did was supposed to be mercy?" Ciel spat.

Before Queen Victoria could answer a gust of wind came and blew her veil way to reveal a teenage girl. Faye and Ciel stared in surprised disbelief at the Queen as Ash landed on the platform.

"A surprise, isn't it?" He asked. "The death of Prince Albert ended the Queen's happiness and in her despair she tried to commit suicide. To ease her pain I attached a piece of her husband so that they can always be together. The Queen and Prince Albert have pledged to cleanse their country and all of Europe. This goal has purified her and turned her countenance into that of a young girl. Truly, she is a worthy master for an angel."

No wonder Angela had reminded Faye of Ash. They were both fallen angels.

"Ash," the Queen said softly, "at least let these two fall to your blade. They have served me loyally and deserve to die in a beautiful way."

Ash pulled out his sword and lunged for Ciel, only to be blocked by Sebastian.

"It looks as though this may be the end, my young master," Sebastian said. "What are your orders?"

"Kill Ash." Ciel paused. "And kill the Queen!"

"Ciel, no!" Queen Victoria cried as Ash and Sebastian began battling. "You must stop this, Ciel."

Faye felt something unfamiliar boiling up inside her. Her family had given _everything _to this woman. Their loyalty, their talents, their resources, their very lives and she killed them for it. She _murdered _them for their faithful service in making England a safer, better place. And now she expected the surviving members of the Phantomhive family to lie down and accept death simply because she wished it.

If it had been anyone else, _anyone else _behind the fire and Ciel and Faye's kidnappings, she could have accepted it. She expected the culprit to be criminal enemies of the Phantomhives, or other nobles who were jealous of the preeminence her family held in the Queen's eyes. But not the Queen.

"Die!" Faye screamed, rushing at the Queen. She wrapped her hands around Queen Victoria's neck and squeezed, backing her up towards the fence of the platform. The Queen tried to pry Faye's fingers away, but like most noblewomen was completely useless at defending herself.

"After everything our family did for you and England, after all the loyal and faithful service we gave, how dare you! All of mine and Ciel's pain is because of you!"

When Faye reached the fence she released the Queen's neck to pick her up. Luckily, the Queen was several inches shorter than Faye and in the youthful form was fairly light. Faye heaved her over the fence and let go.

The Queen clung to fence, her eyes wild with fright. "Don't do this, Faye! I'm only doing what's best for our nation! The uncleanliness must be purified!"

"You're insane," Faye said coldly as she stepped back from the fence. The Queen was weak and her fingers would slip soon enough.

As the Queen began to fall she screamed, "Ash!" Ash left his fight with Sebastian to dive for the Queen.

"No!" Faye screamed as she flung out her right hand. "It mye noc!" The brightly colored spell strings flew towards Ash, but he was too far away. A few strands clung weakly to his wings before he flew out their range.

Faye collapsed to the ground, gasping. She was on the verge of becoming hysterical.

"Faye!" Ciel cried, running over and kneeling next to her. "Faye are you all right?"

Faye looked up at Ciel helplessly, feeling devastated. Now that the Queen was gone her anger had ebbed. She couldn't believe she was capable of doing something like that, of being so overcome with anger that she would try to murder someone with her own hands. She had been so sure that she did not want revenge for what had been done to the Phantomhives. If only it hadn't been the Queen.

"Come, my Lady," Sebastian said as he picked Faye up. "We should leave this place. My fight with Ash has attracted some attention and there is no reason for us to linger here now."

Faye was silent on the carriage ride back to their hotel. She didn't know if Ciel and Sebastian talked at all, she was too caught up in her own anguish. It was hard to face the fact that you were capable of things you didn't ever think you would do. How well did Faye know her own self? Also, most of her magic could only be done by a good soul. Would she still be able to use all her spells? She had used one of them on Ash, but it had barely worked. Though that may have been because he was too far away.

Faye hardly noticed when the carriage stopped and Sebastian and Ciel got out. She heard a whispered conversation, and a moment later Sebastian reappeared. He crouched on the floor by Faye's feet, but Faye couldn't read his expression.

Faye felt tears start to fall. She was so emotionally drained. All she wanted was an escape from all this. It was too much to handle in one day.

"My Lady," Sebastian whispered, one hand coming up to caress her face. Slowly, Sebastian rose up and lowered his face towards Faye's. Moving gently, he began kissing Faye's tears away.

Faye stared blankly ahead. Normally she never would have allowed this, but right now she was too exhausted to move.

When Sebastian had kissed all her tears away his lips hovered over Faye's. When she still didn't move, he placed one knee on the bench beside Faye and moved closer, brushing his lips over hers once, twice, before settling in.

Faye blinked in shock and felt her heart start to race. Surprisingly enough, Faye had never been kissed before. The rituals of the occult did not require it and so the occultists had not engaged in such.

This was the escape Faye needed. It would drive everything else from her mind for at least this moment. Faye's hands came up and tangled in Sebastian's hair. She was shocked at how silky it was.

Sebastian's hands cupped Faye's cheeks before tilting her face higher to give himself a better angle.

Faye pulled back a little to get some air, but Sebastian only gave her a moment before pushing her back against the seat and kissing her again.

The next time Faye needed air, she pushed a hand against Sebastian's chest. He left her mouth to run his lips across her cheek. When he reached her ear he whispered, "Your anger was beautiful tonight, my Lady."

"It wasn't," Faye countered sharply.

"It was," Sebastian argued and Faye could feel him smiling against her cheek. He pulled back to look into her eyes. "You think you've changed who you are, but all you've done is changed your perception of yourself. This is who you've always been."

Faye looked away from Sebastian's eyes to stare at the carriage wall behind him. How would he possibly know that? And what in the world was she doing? For the moment she wasn't minding it, but she was sure she would regret later.

Sebastian slid his knee off the seat and stepped out of the carriage, offering his hand to Faye. "Shall I carry you to the room, my Lady?"

"No," Faye said, accepting his help down, but not looking at him. "I can make it under my own power."

That night Sebastian did something he had never done before. He paced. After Faye and Ciel and gone to bed he walked back and forth between the small kitchen and living room in their hotel suite. He was conflicted as to what course of action he should take. They now knew who was responsible for the humiliation of the Phantomhives. Ciel and Sebastian had spoken once Faye was in her room. They would return to England first thing in the morning. After getting Faye settled in the manor, they would search for the Queen.

Ciel was close to achieving his revenge and Sebastian was close to devouring Ciel's undeniably delicious soul. But then there was the complication of Faye. Once Sebastian ate Ciel's soul, Faye would want nothing to do with him.

Admittedly, he could just take her away and keep her with him until the day she died. She would despise him at first but if he were the only being she had to interact with she may get over her anger in time. Still, she would be miserable and just imaging Faye's look of hatred towards Sebastian caused an unfamiliar ache in his chest.

This was a conundrum no demon had ever had to face before, and whatever Sebastian decided, he would have to decide quickly.

A/N: One more chapter to go! At least for now…


	17. The End

Just wanted to put a note here for those who weren't aware that the sequel is up and in progress :)

A/N: Thank you so much to all who have reviewed, favorited, and followed this story! It's been a lot of work in a short period of time, but it's been fun.

Disclaimer: I only own Faye.

**Phantomhive Manor **

"It's time to get up, my Lord," Sebastian gently awakened Ciel.

It was still dark outside, but Ciel had instructed Sebastian to wake him up shortly after midnight. He wanted to make sure they were long gone by the time Faye woke up. Revenge didn't fit Faye. She may have been furious two days before upon finding out that the Queen was behind the calamity that befell the Phantomhive family, but that wasn't the kind of person she wanted to be. He would carry out his revenge without her present.

Also, he was sure she would try to interfere when it came time for Sebastian to devour his soul. There was no way she could stop it and being there would just make things more difficult for her. It was better to end things this way.

He had written his goodbyes to both Faye and Elizabeth while on the boat ride back from France. Tanaka now had possession of the letters and was instructed to deliver them in one week's time unless he heard otherwise from Ciel.

Ciel would get his revenge this night. The Queen and her angel would die. Then everything would be over.

Faye woke up to a large crackling noise. She looked around in confusion. It was still night, but she could see dancing light through her curtains. Curious, she got and of bed to look out the window. Fire. For a moment Faye was transported back three years ago when Phantomhive Manor had become nothing but walls of flames.

Faye felt the blood drain from her face as she ran to her dresser and threw on a simple dress. When she stepped out of her room she nearly ran into Mey-Rin.

"My Lady, there's something wrong with Pluto! He's setting everything on fire. He's never done anything like this before!"

"Where are the others?" Faye asked, running towards the stairs as she talked.

"Baldroy and Tanaka are trying to contain the fire. Finnian is trying to stop Pluto."

"What about Ciel and Sebastian?"

"I don't know. They're not here and the carriage is gone."

"What?" Faye asked, coming to a halt.

Mey-Rin looked behind her. "My Lady, we need to go! We'll sort out where the master and Sebastian have gone later."

Faye began running again, her mind now split between the fire and her brother's whereabouts. Had he gone to look for the Queen? What else could he be doing at this hour? He meant to fulfill his contract with Sebastian without telling Faye.

They stepped outside to see the entire Phantomhive grounds lit on fire. A small blond figure soon came sailing out of the woods before hitting the ground and rolling. Pluto must have thrown Finnian.

"Finnian!" Faye cried, running to him. "Finnian, are you all right?"

Finnian shakily stood up. "I'm all right, my Lady, but something's wrong with Pluto!" He had tears running down his cheeks. "This isn't like him. What should we do?"

"Where is he?" Faye asked, wondering why the demon hound was lighting everything on fire. Was it just its true nature coming out? But if that were the case why wouldn't he have done something like this before? The dog had always been annoying, but he'd never caused any true trouble. Or maybe that was just because Sebastian had been around to control him.

"He's over there, my Lady," Finny said, pointing straight ahead. "But you can't go over there."

Ignoring his words, she took off in that direction. "My Lady, no!" Finny and Mey-Rin cried.

When Faye reached the tree line she stopped. The heat was almost unbearable and the thick smoke made it difficult to breath. Faye's eyes started to water as she searched for the demon hound. She finally spotted a large white figure amongst all the red, and there was something on top of him. She held her sleeve up to her noise to protect it from the smoke as she narrowed her eyes at the figure. Finally, she was able to make out the face of Ash smiling down at her. Pluto, for whatever reason, was following the fallen angel's orders.

When Faye turned she found Mey-Rin and Finny a short way off.

"Kill him!" She ordered.

"What?" Mey-Rin asked in disbelief as Finny cried, "No!"

"He's no longer the dog you know," Faye said sharply. "Not any more. Now he's just a danger and he needs to be put down." Faye didn't know why Ash wanted the demon hound, but she doubted his plans ended with lighting the Phantomhive Estate on fire.

"Yes, my Lady," the two said with a bow, tears in their eyes.

"Once he's dead, we need to get to safety!" Faye yelled after the two as they ran to find weapons. "Don't be foolish and try to fight this fire!"

Faye backed further away from the line of the fire, but before Mey-Rin and Finny returned Pluto shot through the flames and left Phantomhive grounds.

"Hey! Where's he goin'?" Baldroy asked, coming up to Faye with a shot gun in his hands. Bard was covered in soot and parts of his uniform were burned.

"London," Faye said grimly, noting the direction Pluto had taken. Did the Queen plan to cleanse the nation through fire? Would she kill half of England's citizens in the process? "That means were going there as well. Pluto must be stopped."

Mey-Rin, Finny, Bard, and Faye made a mad dash for London in the Phantomhive's unmarked carriage. By the time they reached the city it was already in flames.

"Find Pluto and kill him," Faye ordered one last time.

"Where are you going, my Lady?" Mey-Rin asked.

"To look for Ciel. I believe I know where he is."

As Faye made her way towards the castle she was surrounded by chaos on every side. People were running and screaming. Those left in burning buildings were crying out to those on the streets. To willingly cause all this, the Queen was well and truly insane. If only she had died back in Paris.

Ciel and Sebastian were leaving the castle just as Faye arrived.

"Faye! What are you doing here?" Ciel demanded in surprise.

"Our home is gone," Faye said in lieu of a real answer. "It has been burned down again. This time by Ash and Pluto, who are now setting fire to London. Our servants are tracking Pluto down to kill him. Is the Queen dead?"

"Yes," Ciel admitted, "but not by our hands. She was dead when we arrived. Ash killed her."

Faye stared at Ciel in surprise. This situation seemed to get more convoluted with every passing hour.

"Now we'll kill Ash," Ciel stated forcefully.

"Do you think I'm going to argue over the murder of a fallen angel attempting to wipe out an entire city? I'm going with you."

"No, you're not, Faye."

"Yes, I am." Faye grabbed Ciel's arm tightly, her voice becoming choked. "You are the most important person to me in this world. I cannot stop you from your revenge or from giving your soul to Sebastian, but I can be there until the end."

Ciel looked conflicted before he turned to look at the ground. "I'm sorry, Faye," he whispered. "All of this was never supposed to involve you." He pulled Faye's hand off his arm and placed it in his own hand. "I suppose I can grant you this one last request."

Faye felt tears start to fall and Sebastian looked away from the siblings' display of affection.

"We must be going," Sebastian said. "I can sense where Ash is. We'll get there fastest if we travel along the river."

When they reached the river's edge they found an abandoned row boat. Sebastian helped both siblings into the boat before pushing out into the middle of the river. Within minutes they reached a bridge that was in the midst of construction. Ash was on top of the bridge, looking out over the city.

The three climbed to the top of the bridge and Ash greeted Sebastian with a smile. "Does this mean you would like to join me after all? Or are you here to stop me?"

Sebastian shook his head in mock disappointment. "Join forces with someone as uncouth as you? Never."

The two began to fight as Faye and Ciel stood watch by a pile of building materials. Ash and Sebastian seemed evenly matched until lines of dark fog came creeping up the bridge and wrapped around Sebastian.

"What is that?" Ciel asked.

"They're souls!" Faye exclaimed. Somehow souls from the dead were coming to Ash's aide. The lines became thicker as more souls joined the fog. Soon Sebastian would be overwhelmed.

"It mye noc!" Faye cried and the lines became thinner as several of the souls were pinned to the bridge, freeing Sebastian up to fight again. Things looked better for a moment, but the fog still continued to grow and Faye couldn't contain them all.

"Faye!" Ciel cried and Faye turned to see the shadows encroaching on them from behind. Faye looked between Ciel and Sebastian in panic. If she stopped helping Sebastian and the fog immobilized him Ash might kill Sebastian, but she didn't know what would happen if this dark fog touched Ciel.

Before she could make a decision the souls started disappearing. Faye and Ciel looked at each other in surprise before Faye realized what was happening. "It's the grim reapers! They've started to reap the souls of the dead." The Reaper Society must have had an entire task force out with the rate at which the souls were disappearing. This would eliminate Ash's advantage.

"My Lord and Lady," Sebastian called, "I have a sincere request to ask of the two of you. I am going to transform into my demon form and I want you both to close your eyes. I prefer for you to think of me only as I am now."

Ciel and Faye looked at each other before Ciel answered, "Fine. Just get this done."

Faye and Ciel huddled by the construction supplies with their closed. Faye felt a massive outpouring of power coming from Sebastian after he changed forms.

From the sounds of the battle, Sebastian clearly had the upper hand now. In less than a minute they heard, "You can open your eyes now."

They opened them to find Sebastian a few feet off, and Faye felt herself start to panic. She stood in front of Ciel with her arms spread out. She knew she couldn't stop this. There wasn't really anything she could do against a demon, but she couldn't sit here and do nothing.

"Faye!" Ciel chastised. "I made an agreement and I will follow through with it."

Sebastian stayed a few feet away, staring into Faye's determined eyes. "You know," he commented, "working for the Phantomhives has been more enjoyable than anything I have done in centuries. I see no harm in continuing my service a little longer. Besides, there's still more work to be done. The Phantomhives still have use of their butler in helping to clean up London."

"What?" Faye whispered in disbelief, still standing protectively in front of Ciel.

"What is the meaning of this, Sebastian?" Ciel demanded, pushing past Faye. "We had a contract. You're half of that contract has been fulfilled. I will now fulfill my half."

"You will indeed fulfill your half of the contract," Sebastian agreed, "but not just yet."

"Why not? You cannot claim that you will delay eating my soul simply because you love being my butler."

"You're quite right, my young master. I will delay eating your soul because I love your sister."

Ciel looked between Faye and Sebastian, an utter look of disbelief on his face. "That's impossible," he declared.

"Under normal circumstances, yes. But other factors have played into this attraction."

Ciel still looked disbelieving. "What other factors? And what of you, Faye? How do you feel?"

"I feel that if Sebastian is willing to delay devouring your soul we should get on with our lives for as long as he will let us."

Ciel was looking increasingly upset. He did not like it when he didn't understand what was going on around him.

"Shall we go home then, young master?" Sebastian asked. "I suppose I'll have to restore Phantomhive Manor once again, but that won't take more than a few minutes."

"I order you to tell me why you are in love with my sister right now!"

Sebastian gave a sigh. "Truly, my Lord? Dawn is just breaking, and you and your sister have had but a few hours of a sleep and a very trying night. Can it not wait until later?"

"No. It cannot." So the three stayed on the bridge to watch the sunrise as Faye and Sebastian explained what had happened.

**Windsor Castle **

"I truly appreciate the Phantomhive's great service to this country during this difficult time," Queen Victoria said. "So many nobles simply fled when the fire began, but you two came straight to London to give what help you could. The two of you are nobles among nobles, as your ancestors were before you. You do the House of Phantomhive proud."

"Thank you," Ciel and Faye murmured.

Faye had no idea how this was possible, but they were sitting in the Queen's sitting room across from an unveiled Queen who looked like the seventy year old woman the Queen was supposed to be. Sebastian was standing behind Faye and Ciel. Behind the Queen stood an attendant named John Brown, who, now that Faye thought about, had often been near the Queen when Faye was a young teenager.

This situation brought out question after question. The first and foremost being how did a dead teenage Queen turn into a live old Queen? Was she an imposter? Or was the previous Queen an imposter set up by Ash? But this Queen had already extolled the virtues of cases recently solved by Faye and Ciel. She was acting as though she had known them their entire lives and had recently spent time with them.

And where had John Brown been when the teenage Queen was around? Was he temporarily replaced by Ash? Had he been locked away somewhere with the true Queen? Or did he know this Queen was an imposter? Faye simply couldn't begin to fathom what was going on here.

When Faye and Ciel had received an invitation to meet with Queen Victoria they had decided to act as though everything was normal. It seemed to be a wise choice since that was how the Queen (the imposter Queen?) was acting. If she was an imposter, Faye was just fine with that. This woman had a good soul, and Faye would happily work as her watch dog alongside Ciel.

"Speaking along those lines, I have a new assignment for you," Queen Victoria said as John handed a letter to Ciel. "There is a group who has organized themselves to take advantage of the chaos left by the fire to steal what they can from those homes and businesses that were damaged. I want you to find those behind this group and disband them."

"Yes, your Majesty," Ciel and Faye intoned.

"Wonderful! I knew I could count on the two of you. Do come back and visit soon, won't you? I truly enjoy your company."

It looked as though things were back to normal for the Phantomhives. As normal as things got for them, anyway.

**Phantomhive Manor **

That night as Faye was brushing her hair she heard a knock on the door. "Come in!" She called, assuming it was Mey-Rin.

She turned and saw that it was Sebastian. She frowned at him when he closed the door behind himself.

"It is hardly proper for a butler to be alone in a bedroom with a Lady," she chastised.

"You're right, of course, but I had a proposition I wished to bring up with you."

"All right," Faye said with narrowed eyes. Sebastian walked over and kneeled in front of Faye's chair.

"Your brother's soul belongs to me. That cannot be changed, but I can give him decades. He can grow up and marry Lady Elizabeth. Have children. But I have two conditions to giving him that time." He paused, either to let Faye say something or for dramatic effect she wasn't sure. "The first condition is that you are not allowed to interact with other men in any way that I do not approve of. The second is that you must allow me to forge a connection with you through the spell that is attached to me. This would allow me to sense you wherever you were and allow you to summon me if the need should arise. Think carefully about this. It would mean that for your entire life you could not get married and have children."

Faye stared into Sebastian's eyes as she considered what he said. She had always planned to marry and have children. Growing up that had always been her vision of the future, and it was one she looked forward to. When she became an associate of the Grim Reaper Society she had given up that dream. Since coming back to Phantomhive Manor she had again expected to marry since was what a Countess is supposed to do, but she wouldn't be surprised if the damage done to her body by the occultists made it impossible for her to have children anyway. There was always the option to adopt, though.

Could she give up her future to allow Ciel to have one when in the end he would lose his soul regardless? If she did this she would get to see her little brother grow up and marry a woman he cared very much for. And if he and Elizabeth had children, part of Ciel would always live on even though he would cease to exist. Wasn't this part of what it meant to love someone? Sacrificing your own wants and desires for their benefit?

"I accept."

A/N: I admit, this is not a totally satisfying ending. Faye chose to accept Sebastian's terms for Ciel's sake, not because she wanted to be with Sebastian. For Faye to truly accept Sebastian would probably take about 40,000 more words…which is why I'd like to do a sequel later this year.

I make NO promises on writing one, but I would like to do a sequel to this story incorporating elements from the second season and from the manga (which I plan to read later this year). The problem I have is that I know how I would start the sequel, but I don't know how to end it. I'm hoping that reading the manga will spark some ideas. If I can figure out an ending I'd be satisfied with I'll definitely write a sequel, though it would most likely be done around late fall/early winter.

Thanks again for all the support I've gotten for this fanfiction!


	18. Author's Note

I just wanted to put a note here that part 3 to this story, Lord Michaelis, is now being posted! In case anyone missed the second part, it's Countess Faye Phantomhive. I'd recommend reading part 2 before reading part 3.


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